


She Didn't Know It Then

by ToriWritesStories



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Bartender!Toni, Bottom Cheryl Blossom, Cheryl likes girls, Drama, Drinking, Endgame, Endgame Cheryl Blossom/Toni Topaz, Eventual Smut, F/F, Flirting, Fluff, Fluff and Smut, Friends to Lovers, Happy Ending, I wrote this fanfic in 12 days and it's complete so updates are regular I promise, Insecurity, It's 15 chapters and 93000 words that I poured my heart and soul into so go ahead and check it out, New York City, Partying, Queers, Romance, Slow Burn, Smut, Toni has a crush on Cheryl, Top Toni Topaz, but doesn't think she has a chance bc they've been friends for a year, choni, college age, lowkey pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-06
Updated: 2018-12-13
Packaged: 2019-07-06 17:52:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 93,716
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15891045
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ToriWritesStories/pseuds/ToriWritesStories
Summary: Toni Topaz and Cheryl Blossom have been good friends for a year, starting from when they met via Toni's best friend Veronica Lodge, but Toni has always wanted to be more than just Cheryl's friend. When Veronica starts spending a lot more time with Betty, her new beau, Toni and Cheryl start to spend more time together. And when Cheryl starts to open up to Toni, things start changing between them.Or, a College!Choni fic that takes place in NYC where Toni and Veronica are besties, Veronica and Cheryl are besties, and when Veronica gets busy with Betty, Toni and Cheryl start getting closer!





	1. Stand-In Veronica

**Author's Note:**

> Hello lovelies, welcome to my first ever Choni fanfic! If you don't know me (most of you probably don't), my name is Tori, and I've been writing Clexa fanfiction on Ao3 for about 2.5 years now! Before that, I wrote for many other femslash fandoms on Fanfiction (starting in 2012), and now I'm here, with this Choni story that I wrote in 12 days. It's 15 chapters (~93,000 words), and updates are going to be either weekly or twice weekly, depending on how busy life gets for me. But since it's already all written, there will 100% be updates every Thursday (ok but if I accidentally post Friday instead of Thursday i'm sorry)!! If you're interested in getting sneak peeks or early updates, make sure to follow me on Twitter @BrittzandTana !!  
> I'm super obsessed with this ship and I'm so excited to be joining this fandom on Ao3, so without further ado... (enjoy!!xx)

****Toni looked between her textbook and her notes in frustration. She hadn’t been expecting this particular class on the history of film to be so textbook focused, but now that she was in it, she supposed that she should have. The problem was that her first exam of the semester for the class was in two days—on Monday morning—and Toni was getting all wrapped up in a bunch of names and dates, and memorization had never been her best skill in school.

A knock on her door suddenly made her jump, and she huffed, running her hand through her brown, blonde, and pink hair and calling, “What’s up?”

“Veronica is here,” Sweet Pea announced through the door, “and she’s in one of those jumpy moods, so hurry up.”

“Shut up!” Toni heard Veronica scoff at him, and she smirked. Sweet Pea and Veronica were basically her two best friends. She’d known Sweet Pea her whole life, and Veronica since the beginning of high school. Both of them had been there for Toni during her worst—when her parents had essentially abandoned her, and she’d had nowhere to stay and had almost lost hope of leading any kind of successful life. But with their help, she’d kept up her grades enough to get a little bit of money from a few different scholarship programs. Not enough to pay for all of her college, but enough that she could work her way through the rest. The three of them had all been elated when their plans for college had lined up—Veronica and Toni were both going to New York University, and Sweet Pea had gotten accepted to the City College of New York.

They’d originally been planning on getting an apartment for the three of them to share, closer to NYU since Sweet Pea was way more willing to take the subway than either of the two girls to get to his classes, but Veronica had decided to rush for a sorority—Delta Gamma Zeta. AT NYU, sororities didn’t get their own houses, but they did get a whole section of the dorms to themselves, so Veronica had decided to live on campus. If she didn’t get through the rush process, well, she’d “suck up living in the dorms for a semester,” as she said.

So Toni and Sweet Pea had split an apartment instead, still closer to NYU than to CCNY, and Veronica had, _of course_ , been chosen for Delta Gamma Zeta. She had the complete sorority girl vibe, plus she was hard working and very sociable. Toni had never doubted her friend.

It was a year later now, and Toni and Sweet Pea were still splitting the same apartment, and Veronica was still living in the floor for Delta Gamma Zeta. But Veronica was never opposed to dropping by the apartment, especially if she was excited about something, which Toni was bracing herself for as she abandoned her history of film textbook and left her bedroom.

“What’s up, V? I’m studying?”

“Uh, no you are not anymore!” Veronica insisted. “You and I are going out.”

“Dude, no, I have a test on Monday, and all this shit is confusing me. I _have_ to do good in this class, okay?”

“ _Well_ ,” Veronica corrected, “you have to do _well_.”

“Yeah well, I’m not a fucking English major. You go out, I’ll go with you next weekend.”

“No,” Veronica whined, and Toni sighed, leaning against her doorframe and looking into her friend’s eyes. Veronica’s tone told the pink haired girl that some sort of reasoning about why Toni just _had_ to go with her was coming. “I need my best wing woman, T! Betty is gonna be there.”

Toni breathed out slowly. Of _course_ that would be why Veronica had forgone studying for her own midterms. Betty was a girl she’d met this semester in one of her classes, and the two of them had hit it off immediately. Toni had been on the receiving end of many ramble sessions by her best friend about the girl with the blonde ponytail who could never fail to bring a smile to her face. So of course, Toni wanted to be there for Veronica through this, because the two girls were still in the flirting stage, and they’d only been on one date, and Veronica claimed that she and Betty weren’t even sure if it’d been a real _date_.

“Please, please, please, Toni?” Veronica pleaded. “I’ll totally owe you one if you come with. And it’s not far – it’s at Reggie and Archie’s place.”

“Who else is going to be there?”

Veronica’s face lit up a little bit. “You know, the usual gang. Kevin, Fangs, Jughead, Sweet Pea if he wants to come?” She glanced at Toni’s roommate, who was currently slurping down some ramen. He shrugged in response, and Veronica looked back at Toni with a small smirk, “And some girls from Delta Gamma Zeta.”

“Some girls like who?” Toni asked. “I don’t know everyone in your sorority, V.”

“Pretty sure Cheryl said she’s coming,” Veronica finally gave in and admitted. Toni perked up a little bit. “I didn’t want to seem _presumptuous_ by starting with her.”

Sweet Pea suddenly asked, “What do you mean?”

“She means nothing,” Toni said with a roll of her eyes, though her heart rate had picked up a little bit at the prospect of Sweet Pea figuring out what Veronica actually meant. Although she’d known Sweet Pea for a lot longer than she’d known Veronica, they weren’t in the habit of sharing their deepest and darkest secrets, at least not once Toni had gotten so close to Veronica. And in all honesty, Toni hadn’t even meant to share _this_ secret with Veronica.

Her best friend had learned about her crush on Cheryl Blossom at the end of the previous semester.

Cheryl “Bombshell” Blossom, the beautiful redhead with dark, captivating eyes that invited one to stare deeply into them, full, usually red lips just begging for someone to bite one gently, and perfect, smooth, pale skin that pleaded to be touched. Cheryl had met Veronica in Delta Gamma Zeta the fall before, and she and Veronica had been very fast friends, which of course meant that Veronica would introduce her to Toni, whose interest was piqued instantly.

At the time, though, Cheryl had been dating Archie Andrews. It wasn’t a very serious thing, Toni had later learned, but it had taken Cheryl off the market when they first met. So Toni hadn’t pursued—she wasn’t a homewrecker of any sort. So despite Cheryl’s undeniable beauty and Toni’s desperate temptation, she’d become friends with the redhead. Toni would consider her even a good friend, although Veronica was definitely closer to her, seeing as how they were both members of the same sorority.

Toni had figured that she would get over Cheryl’s beauty and they would settle into a nice friendship, but she’d quickly learned that there were ridiculous amounts of things about the woman that were totally crush worthy. She was known by many at NYU to be a bitch, but Toni and Veronica knew that was more of a defense mechanism, because Cheryl was a _fierce_ friend. Anything that she was interested in, she was _incredibly_ passionate about it. Her passion made her one of the most driven people that Toni had ever met. She was double majoring in business and performing arts, and Toni admired her for being able to juggle that much school. Sure, Toni worked alongside her studies, but it was totally different to be taking those extra hours of classes that could definitely not be easy.

So Toni, despite her efforts, had begun harboring a crush on her friend. Cheryl broke up with Archie near the end of their first semester the year before, and Toni had seen her opening. She’d spent the break texting Cheryl, who had gone home for the winter hiatus from classes, and they’d gotten a lot closer. But by the time they’d gotten back from break, Cheryl had gotten really busy with school, and they’d had to stop talking as much. And then Cheryl had started dating another guy—whose name Toni could honestly not remember—off and on for a couple of months.

And it was at the end of that relationship that Veronica had figured out Toni’s crush— _apparently_ Toni had looked a little too happy about the fact that Cheryl had ended things with that guy. And Veronica had connected some dots, and voila, she discovered Toni’s deepening crush on the redhead.

During the summer, Cheryl had gone out of the country to stay with some of her extended family, and the most any of her friends had heard from her during most of that was occasional messages at the same time as she posted her weekly Instagram pictures. As soon as the new semester had started, though, her friendships with Toni and Veronica had picked back up easily. And Toni’s crush, although it had never really died off, had kicked in pretty strongly once again. Only now, Veronica knew about it, and it was infuriating, to say the least.

“So,” Veronica was saying now, pushing past Toni into her bedroom, “let’s pick you out a sexy as hell outfit for this party, Toni!”

“Fine, but _only_ because I know you’re still in the beginning stages with Betty,” Toni gave in. “And tomorrow, you have to let me study.”

“Deal!”

* * *

Toni trailed behind Veronica into Reggie and Archie’s apartment—it was too small for a party like this, but somehow, they always managed to make it work. The whole main area of the apartment was packed, from the entrance, to the kitchen, to the living room. Probably certain groups of the two guys’ friends were packed in the two bedrooms as well, but Toni wouldn’t be caught dead in either of those pigsties.

“So where’s Betty?” Toni wondered.

“Looking,” Veronica answered, her arms crossed over her chest as she scanned the room the best she could. “C’mon, people are too tall to see everyone in here.” She suddenly grabbed Toni’s hand and tugged her further into the apartment.

“Aye! Ronnie!” Archie suddenly called drunkenly, running up to the two of them. Toni wasn’t Archie’s biggest fan, for a number of reasons. The first, obviously, was because he’d dated Cheryl. The second was because he had been all over Veronica the previous semester, no matter how many times Veronica had told him that she wasn’t interested. “And Toni! Welcome to our humble midterm party!”

“This is what you guys like to do instead of preparing for exams?”

“Hey, you’re here too, Tiny,” Jughead suddenly said, appearing from what seemed like nowhere. “Where’s Sweets?”

“He had some stuff to do before he came over,” Toni answered dismissively, glancing around the apartment to find her friend’s crush. Finally, she spotted the signature, blonde ponytail, and the girl it belonged to. _And_ , she was standing next to none other than _Cheryl_ Blossom, both of them leaning against the wall of the living area. “Hey, V.”

Veronica followed her gaze and cleared her throat. “It was nice to see you, boys, but we have business to attend to.” Veronica continued tugging Toni toward the two girls across the room. “Betty!” Veronica called brightly, releasing Toni’s hand to wave.

“Hey, Veronica,” Betty greeted, her face lighting up significantly. It was easy to see that the two girls really liked each other, and Toni just wished her friend could get the guts to take bigger steps forward with the blonde, since Betty was clearly being shy about it. “And hey, Toni. How are you?”

“Pretty average,” Toni admitted, “I was _supposed_ to be studying for my history of film midterm.”

“That’s what tomorrow is for,” Cheryl said, “not Saturday night.”

“You can’t talk, Cheryl,” Veronica argued, “you spent all morning studying.”

Cheryl rolled her eyes. “But I’m here at this party, aren’t I?”

“Well, so am I.” Toni crossed her arms defensively.

“Yes, we’re all here,” Veronica agreed with a laugh and a shake of her head as she looked to Betty. “Would you mind showing me where the drinks are, B?”

“Sure,” Betty agreed, grabbing the raven haired girl’s hand and starting to pull her away.

“I want a drink too,” Toni said to her friend, but the two of them had already slipped off, and Toni rolled her eyes, moving into the space that Betty had been previously occupying, leaning against the wall and looking at Cheryl, trying not to stare too much at the red crop top that matched her bright lipstick, or her exposed midsection that contrasted with the dark wash jeans that hugged her thighs and ass so well.

Cheryl was smirking at her. “So I guess things are going well with Betty and Veronica?”

“Well enough, I guess,” Toni confirmed, “although I _am_ here as her ‘wing woman,’ so our dear Veronica is clearly still a little bit of a mess about all this. And to be honest, it doesn’t help that they’re both being shy about everything. It’s so obvious that they both clearly like each other.”

“Sometimes those kinds of things are obvious to everyone _except_ the people involved,” Cheryl claimed.

Toni nodded. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. So… how many midterms do _you_ have next week?”

“Four,” Cheryl admitted with a frown, “but Veronica’s correct, I spent all day with my face buried in my books, so when some of the sorority girls said they were coming to this party, I figured I should give myself a break. _You_ should be giving yourself a real break too, Toni. You need a drink.”

“Oh I know, trust me,” Toni agreed, “but I wasn’t about to third wheel with _B and V_ on their trip to the drink table.”

“Well, I’ll gladly accompany you so you won’t be third wheeling if they’re still over there,” Cheryl offered with a little laugh.

“Why thank you,” Toni replied in mock formality. “Where did they set drinks up in this tiny ass apartment anyway?”

“The kitchen, obviously.” Cheryl nudged Toni before starting in that direction, squeezing between bodies. Toni followed quickly, and it was easy to not lose the redhead for that exact reason – her hair stood out so obviously in the midst of all of its surroundings. Plus, the apartment was ridiculously small, it would be a huge feat to actually lose someone for more than a few seconds.

Somehow, Veronica and Betty were nowhere to be scene from the kitchen, and Toni wondered if they actually left, or if they’d simply tried to find a less congested location to have conversation. Either way, Toni would be texting Veronica in about twenty minutes to make sure she wasn’t dead. It was their typical party arrangement.

“What would you like?” Cheryl was asking her all of the sudden.

Toni eyed the alcohol, which honestly looked like a lot of the same. “Um, what do they have? Trash can punch and tequila?”

“Looks like it,” Cheryl answered with a laugh. “Um, they had beer when I got here…”

“I’ll take the trash can punch – but if I start to act _loopy_ really fast, you’ll have to rush me to the hospital. Because I do _not_ trust anyone here.”

Cheryl smirked and rolled her eyes, pouring Toni a solo cup full of the mysterious punch, and handed it to the pinked haired girl. When she took it, their fingers touched slightly, and Toni told herself not to care. It wasn’t like Cheryl could possibly feel the electricity that Toni felt every time she touched Cheryl. If she did… how could she have spent all this time ignoring it?

“You know,” Toni started after taking a sip from her cup, “it’s surprising how much I _don’t_ hate this shit every time I drink it.”

“Yeah, aren’t you supposed to be incredibly uptight about your alcohol since you’re a _bartender_?” Cheryl asked, chuckling as she leaned against the kitchen counter. It was true, Toni’s part time job alongside school was at a bar near her apartment. It paid her bills and the extra time she put in over the summer paid for school.

“Maybe,” Toni agreed, a small smile tugging at her lips. “Isn’t it ironic that I’m allowed to serve alcohol, but I’m technically not allowed to drink it yet?” Toni, as well as Cheryl and all their friends, was twenty years old. But, at least in New York City, she was officially old enough to make and serve alcoholic beverages, and she was damn good at it if you asked _anyone_.

“It’s kinda badass if you ask me,” Cheryl answered with a little laugh that made Toni think she must have had a lot more to drink than the pink haired girl had thought previously. She only ever got close to giggling when she was drunk – and Toni had witnessed that quite a few times.

“Well thank you, Bombshell.” Toni winked playfully at the redhead, who laughed again, louder and brighter this time. Toni only ever really flirted with Cheryl when the redhead was drunk, maybe so that Cheryl would think she was imagining it if she thought about it the next day with distaste, but maybe also because Cheryl had never received any flirtatious comments negatively from Toni when she was drunk.

Suddenly, though, their conversation was interrupted by a redhead that Toni was quite a lot less fond of, and who had already annoyed her once that night—Archie. “Hey Toni,” he greeted brightly, looking at Cheryl with less interest as he added, “Cheryl.”

“Archie,” Cheryl bit back, her tone so starkly different from the one she’d been using to talk to Toni a moment before. Toni had never heard details on their breakup, which was nearly a year ago now, but she did know that the two of them were definitely not friends. Another reason that Toni never felt the need to entertain his boring conversation.

Archie looked back to Toni, and she knew what he was going to ask before he did. “Where’s Veronica?”

“With Betty, I think,” Toni answered flatly, “why? Something wrong, or are you just trying for the fiftieth time to get into her pants?”

Archie scoffed. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Topaz.”

“Okay well, if you find Veronica, do her a favor and leave her alone? She’s not here to spend her Saturday night talking to you, okay?”

“Whatever.” Archie turned and disappeared, and Toni heaved a sigh, rolling her eyes and gulping down quite a bit of her drink. She felt Cheryl’s eyes on her, and when she was seemingly not going to stop her drinking, the redhead started speaking.

“Hey, maybe you should slow down, Toni.” Toni obliged, because Cheryl was right. She shouldn’t get wasted this early on in the night, or maybe even at all. She did have homework to do the next day. “I know that I have good reason to despise Archie, but I didn’t realize you were so not fond of him as well.”

Toni hoped that her cheeks didn’t turn too red at the comment. “Yeah, I don’t know, he’s kind of infuriating. He spent all of last semester trying to get with Veronica, and she never liked him like that.”

“Yeah, he’s… a lot.”

“What exactly happened between you two?” Toni wondered, unsure as to whether knowing would make her feel better or worse regarding her crush situation. “If you don’t mind telling, of course, I don’t want you to be uncomfortable.”

Cheryl waved her hand dismissively. “It’s fine. He was just… not really with me for _me_ . He liked the sex, I guess, and the fact that he apparently got to slap a label on me that said ‘mine.’ He didn’t care about what I liked to do, or what I _wanted_ to do, or what I was interested in. He didn’t come to my first performance in November last year, even though he’d promised, and then when I asked him about it, he didn’t know what I was talking about. He just didn’t _care_ . And… I don’t get how someone can call themselves in a relationship with someone who they don’t even _care_ about.”

Toni frowned deeply, because Cheryl definitely did _not_ deserve to be treated that way by anyone. Toni had never been very fond of violence, although her middle school years had taught her how to hold her own in a fight, but right now, she was half a second away from storming through the room and landing a solid punch on Archie Andrews’ pretty, fuck boy face. “Geez,” she said instead, “that sounds horrible. I knew he was an asshole, but that’s definitely another level of crazy.”

Cheryl nodded, rolling her eyes as she took a drink of her beer. “Yeah.”

“So… anything new on the dating front then?” Okay, now Toni was just being a masochist.

“Not at all,” Cheryl admitted. “I’m trying to convince myself that it’s for the better, I have a lot on my plate anyway. But every time I _do_ have free time—no class, no homework, no sorority stuff… I think about it, and it sucks.”

“Hey, I hear ya,” Toni agreed, sipping her trash can punch. It tasted even better now that she was starting to feel the effects of alcohol in her system. She wasn’t really a lightweight, but chugging definitely helped her get tipsy.

“What about you?” Cheryl was asking suddenly. “We don’t usually talk about _your_ dating prospects, Toni.”

“Yeah, because they’re nonexistent,” Toni told her friend. “I’m single and ready to mingle, have been since the end of high school. I’ve told you about that right? I dated a girl off and on through senior year, and we called it off officially because she went to the west coast for college.”

“Yeah, I remember you saying that.” Cheryl sipped her beer. “Well, I’m sure you’ll find someone.”

Toni smiled sadly. “You too, Bombshell.” She glanced around them kind of awkwardly. “So… do you think we should be actually partying or something?”

“Doesn’t drinking count as partying?”

“You’re asking me? You’re the sorority girl here, isn’t the first thing you learn in a sorority like, partying 101?”

Cheryl scoffed. “Uh, _no_ , it’s not. And NYU sororities don’t even really have parties—how can they? We’re living in a bunch of dorms.”

“Yeah, no, fuck that,” Toni agreed with a laugh. “I was never cut out for dorm life, hence why I have never lived in one.”

“You’re lucky. It sucks sharing a bedroom with someone. You have _no_ privacy, like, _ever_.”

“Guess you just have to date people who have their own bedrooms then,” Toni commented suggestively, wiggling her eyebrows in a playful manner at the other woman, who just smirked.

“As helpful as that is, yes, it doesn’t matter when you’re in bed alone at night and you need to _take care of things_. Have you ever tried to in the same room as someone else?”

Toni was honestly very surprised at the turn of this conversation, and she took a long drink from her cup to cover how flushed she probably was about the fact that _Cheryl Blossom_ was talking to her about masturbating. “Um no, can’t say that I have, Red.”

“Well, it’s horribly awkward,” Cheryl promised her, sipping her beer, “but you’ve gotta do what you’ve gotta do sometimes.”

“Damn. So, what I’m hearing is the real thing they should be teaching sorority girls right off the bat is masturbating silently 101?”

“Oh my god, shut up,” Cheryl exclaimed with a scoff, though her pale cheeks had flushed darker at Toni’s question, making the pink haired girl smile. “Seriously, though. I’m leaving the dorms as quickly as possible. Delta Gamma Zeta _would like_ us to stay in them all four years, but if you’re not trying to snatch a leadership position, they don’t really care all that much.”

“So when’s the quickest you can escape? Next semester, or the one after?”

“Honestly, I don’t know,” Cheryl admitted. “Depends on how easy it is for me to convince my horrid _mother_ that paying for off campus living is the best plan.”

“Ah right, mommy dearest,” Toni said sarcastically. She’d heard about Cheryl’s mother, Penelope Blossom—how she was mostly a nightmare, with few redeemable qualities. One of those were her bank account, which although was very extensive, was still accessed for only the best reasons—or basically whatever _Penelope_ deemed were the best reasons. “Well, you _could_ always stoop to the level of us mortals and work to pay rent.”

Cheryl frowned a little bit, and Toni hoped that her joke hadn’t come off too seriously. She respected the fact that she and Cheryl had come from very different upbringings, and she wasn’t trying to be offensive. But Cheryl’s response indicated that she hadn’t gone too far, maybe just hit a nerve. “Trust me, Toni, I would. But with my double major, I would be terrified of flunking out if I tried to add in twenty or more hours of week of work. And if I let my grades slip at all, especially the business side…” She snapped her fingers, surprising Toni enough to cause her to jump a little. “NYU is gone like that. Because my mother is a bitch.”

“Right,” Toni said softly, trying to give her friend an apologetic look.

“It’s whatever,” Cheryl said quickly, “this is not the time to talk about that kind of drama.” She suddenly took back the rest of her beer. “Maybe we should be getting wasted.”

“I don’t know about that, Cher,” Toni argued quickly, “I don’t think either of us want to be nursing a hangover all the way to Monday morning.”

Cheryl sighed, looking at Toni seriously for a moment. “Yeah. You’re right. One shot? Both of us, then we’ll keep each other from getting any more wasted?”

“Deal,” Toni agreed, and Cheryl turned around to pour them both each a shot of tequila in the little tiny red solo shot glasses. She handed one of them to Toni, and on the quick count of three, they threw them back.

* * *

**Tiny Toni – Hey, you’re alive right?**

**V-Ronnie – Alive and feeling even more alive! How’s the party?**

**Tiny Toni – So you did leave lol?**

**V-Ronnie – Betty’s place is down the street, I’m over there. She went across the street to buy us pizza, and she has wine so I am !!! excited!**

**Tiny Toni – Haha sounds great, V, you think you’ll stay over there tonight?**

**V-Ronnie – Probably, getting back to campus would be hell this late and your place is a cab ride away—and I hate cabs. I’ll ask Betty if it’s cool if I crash here.**

**Tiny Toni – Ok, lemme know if you head back to campus or if you head over to mine so I can make sure you get there ok!**

**V-Ronnie – Aww, I have the sweetest bestie! Ok! Will do!**

**V-Ronnie – You never answered me! How’s the party?**

**Tiny Toni – Not bad, been hanging out w Cheryl. She’s in the bathroom rn.**

**V-Ronnie – Are you ever gonna make a real move on that girl, T?**

**Tiny Toni – Why would I?**

**V-Ronnie – I’m just saying…**

**Tiny Toni – Well, no, I’m not. Anyway, she’s out of the bathroom now so I’m putting the phone down. Have fun with Betty! Text me later!**

**V-Ronnie – You got it!**

“Was that Veronica?” Cheryl wondered as Toni pocketed her phone.

“Yeah, she and Betty went over to Betty’s place,” Toni answered with a nod.

“Not that I’m not happy for her,” Cheryl started, “but I never really thought about what it would be like to have my best friend be dating someone. Like, when I’m dating people, Veronica always has you. She’s lucky, having two best friends.”

Toni examined Cheryl’s slightly faraway look. “Hey well,” she said quickly, drawing that dark gaze, “we might not be as close as either of us are to Veronica, but we’re friends, right? And we’re both single as fuck right now. So if you need anything and V is busy with Betty…” She let the rest be implied, because she felt kind of self-conscious about saying this at all.

Cheryl just smiled softly in response, saying, “I like the way you think, Topaz. We can be each other’s stand-in Veronicas.”

And Toni laughed and nodded at that, but really she felt her heart sink a little lower, because elevating her friendship with Cheryl felt like a huge step even deeper into the friendzone. But she would suck it up, because like she told Veronica, she wasn’t expecting anything to ever happen between the two of them. This new development only confirmed that, and Toni needed to deal with it.


	2. The Most Real

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Toni's becoming more interested in figuring out what's going on inside Cheryl's head, as they continue to spend time together in lieu of Veronica's first official date with Betty.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello and happy Monday! Well, as happy as a Monday can be anyway! I'm here to make it a little happier with this update! If there are ever twice a week updates, this is how they'll come, Monday and then Thursday (so chapter 3 will be up on Thursday!) There're ways for you to get sneak peeks and early updates! Check out my Twitter @BrittzandTana !  
> Thank you to those who have subscribed and left kudos here, it's much appreciated! If anyone has any comments or feedback, constructive or all positive, feel free to leave them! I love chatting in the comments :)  
> Without further ado, enjoy!!xx

****The following morning, Toni dragged her ass out of bed as early as she could manage, which was unfortunately only until after eleven. It wasn’t even because of a headache or any other symptoms of a hangover, because in all honesty, she hadn’t gotten very drunk at the party. She’d just been there very late, because she was waiting to see what Veronica’s plans for the night were. Of course, the fact that Cheryl had stayed really late had made it a lot easier for her to not head home until about two in the morning.

After slipping into the bathroom to wash off her face, brush her teeth, and loosely tie her hair into two braids, she ventured back down the hall to the kitchen, where Sweet Pea was making eggs – the one thing he knew how to make other than ramen.

“Are some of those for me?” Toni asked hopefully, drawing her best friend’s attention.

“Yes, I figured you’d finally be waking up soon. Hungover?”

“Not really, I didn’t drink a whole lot in all honesty. Did you ever show up last night?”

Sweet Pea looked at her curiously. “I did, but you were with Cheryl when I got there so I went and found Jughead. We didn’t stay very long—there’s a club he and Fangs wanted to try out so we went there instead. Plus, Reggie was clearly wanting to pick a fight with me.”

“Gotcha,” Toni nodded in understanding, going to their fridge to grab orange juice and pouring herself a glass. “Yeah, V went off with Betty right when the night started, so Cheryl and I were keeping each other company.”

“What’s up with that girl this semester?” Sweet Pea wondered, and Toni didn’t really knew what he meant by that. Was there something up with Cheryl that Toni hadn’t noticed?

“I don’t know? What exactly do you mean?”

Sweet Pea shrugged. “I heard that she came back from this summer a little different—like, damaged maybe?”

“That’s not exactly a polite way to refer to someone,” Toni muttered, and Sweet Pea let out a breath of exasperation.

“I’m not saying she is, Tiny, I’m saying what some other people have said. Like maybe she had a rough summer and it’s been throwing her off this semester. Fangs said she hasn’t seemed all there in class and shit.”

Toni frowned. “I don’t know. I haven’t seen her a whole lot this semester, we’ve both been busy, and I’ve been Veronica’s emotional support over Betty a lot recently. Last night was the most I’d talked to Cheryl in a couple of weeks actually.”

“Yeah, I don’t know anything about it, I was just curious to see if you’d heard or seen anything,” Sweet Pea told her with a shrug. “Anyway, did I miss much at the party?”

“No,” Toni promised him, “it was lame, but the trash can punch was good.”

“You always think trash can punch is good, somehow.” Toni cracked a smile, because he was right. “Speaking of alcohol, do you work today?”

“Yeah, four hour shift tonight at six. I’m glad my test tomorrow is at eleven and not like, eight. Learned my lesson after _last_ semester.”

“So you gonna spend the day up to your shift studying?”

“That is the plan. Why? You going to try and pull a Veronica and get me to do something else instead? Because it won’t work.”

Sweet Pea snickered, putting some eggs on a plate and passing it to the pink haired girl. “No, don’t worry. I actually need to study too, I have a midterm on Wednesday and I’m working like, all day when I’m not in class for the next two days. Got an email today saying that three people are out with some awful flu.”

Toni frowned. “Dude, you’re part time, you don’t _have_ to agree to go in.”

“Yeah, but the money doesn’t hurt. Plus, I’m not really worried about this midterm, and I’ll study today. And I found the textbook as an audiobook for free on YouTube, so I’ll listen to it on the subways and shit.”

“Alright, Sweets, just don’t fail, okay?”

“When have I ever failed a test, Toni?”

Toni furrowed her eyebrows. “Do you want me to answer that?”

Sweet Pea smiled sheepishly. “Okay yeah, no. Just eat your eggs and be grateful that you have the greatest roommate in the world.”

“Not sure I’d go as far as to say the _greatest_ , but thanks for breakfast.”

* * *

“Toni! Toni!” Toni heard the voice calling to her even despite the earbuds that were playing her usual playlist, and she tugged them out in annoyance as she turned to see Veronica practically running up to her, probably having just come out of class. Toni had been on her way to the subway, done with class for the day. It was Friday, and she was desperately looking forward to the weekend, even if she would be working for some of it. She’d had her history of film midterm on Monday, followed by a project checkpoint for her another class on Tuesday, an English midterm on Thursday, and earlier that day she’d had a photography midterm. Somehow, she’d accidentally selected the only professor for that course who gave actual tests in that class.

“Hey, what’s up, Ronnie?”

“Betty asked me out – _officially_ this time – tonight! I need you to help me pick my outfit! Now!”

“Dude, since when do you need _my_ help with an outfit? You’re like, one of the best dressed people I know – topped only maybe by Cheryl – and you and I have like, the most polar opposite styles ever.”

“I need you, T, please? For emotional support while I pick out clothes, at least?” Veronica asked. “I’ll pay you back with food later?”

“Alright, fine. But Chinese takeout doesn’t count.”

“Deal!” Veronica grabbed Toni’s hand happily and started tugging her in the other direction, toward the dorms. “By the way, Cheryl’s wardrobe does _not_ top mine. We have different aesthetics, so at the most, they’re tied.”

“Different aesthetics?” Toni asked in shock. “No, no, V. You and I have different aesthetics. You and Cheryl have the _exact_ same aesthetic – _fancy_. Fancy all the time, even when you’re literally going to class. I mean, look at yourself.”

“No,” Veronica huffed out. “Mine is _formal_ . Cheryl’s is… _extra_.”

“Don’t let her hear you say that,” Toni muttered, lifting an eyebrow. “Hey… have you noticed anything different about Cheryl this semester? Sweets said he heard that some people said she seemed off after this summer.”

Veronica shrugged. “I don’t really know. Honestly, we haven’t hung out as much as last year, so I guess maybe if that counts? But to be fair, we’re both a lot busier with school this semester. You’re the one who spent all night talking to her last weekend, you’d probably be more likely to know anything. Anyway, since when is Sweet Pea the best source for any news about people at NYU?”

“You’re right… I don’t know, he said that Fangs noticed her being off in class and stuff. And you kind of live with her, so.”

“I don’t really, though,” Veronica reminded her, “we have different roommates. Mine, by the way, hasn’t been home in a week. Pretty sure she’s practically living with her boyfriend. It’s actually a relief for me, so I’m definitely not complaining, but like, it’s kind of weird.”

Toni shook her head at her friend – and she called _Cheryl_ extra.

“Anyway, about Cheryl. I would just ask her how she’s doing if you really wanna know. And I _know_ you _really_ wanna know.”

“Okay, V, seriously. This is why I didn’t tell you about… this stupid _crush_ , okay?” Toni snapped, her tone very different all of the sudden and causing Veronica to stop in surprise. “You need to stop saying things like that. Sweet Pea or someone else is going to catch on, and the _last_ thing I need is for Cheryl to hear from someone that one of her friends is harboring a year old crush on her, okay?”

Veronica let out a breath. “Alright, T, I’m sorry. You know I didn’t mean any harm.”

“Of course I know that,” Toni promised her, softening again. “Come on, let’s get back to your place so we can get you in something else in your _fancy_ wardrobe for your date with Betty.”

* * *

“I told you, Veronica, you look cute, okay?” Toni insisted.

“I don’t want to look _cute_ , Toni! I want to look… _ravishing_ ,” Veronica reminded her best friend. “I want Betty to not be able to take her eyes off of me, because I can never take my eyes off of her and I just… I want this to be perfect, okay?”

“Well, _I_ wouldn’t use the word ravishing, because I’m your best friend and definitely _not_ your girlfriend, but you look hot, V. And what you wear isn’t going to make your date any less perfect, you know that,” Toni told the dark haired girl. “Betty really likes you, and you really like Betty, and instead of fussing over outfits, you need to fuss over the fact that you need to figure out how to fucking tell her that straight up. Because both of you are beating around the bush like crazy and I swear if I was reading a book about it, I’d be screaming at the pages for one of you to cut this slow burn shit out.”

Veronica rolled her eyes. “It’s been like, a month and a half since we met.”

“Yeah, and you’ve been in the early flirting stage for most of that.”

Suddenly there was a knock on Veronica’s dorm door, and the girl gave Toni a confused look, indicating that she wasn’t expecting anyone. She went to the door and swung it open, revealing Cheryl, who immediately stole all of Toni’s attention. She was wearing high waisted red pants that looked really soft, though Toni couldn’t identify what exactly they were made out of, and tucked into those pants was a white top that faded into lace just above her breasts. The half sleeves were both fully white lace as well, and a cherry brooch was pinned to the expensive looking fabric on one side. She was sporting her usual red lipstick and was standing in white heels. As per usual, she looked like she could be going to some incredibly fancy event, when in reality, she’d probably worn that outfit to class.

“Cheryl!” Veronica said brightly. “Hey, what’s up?”

“Well, I was coming to ask if you had plans tonight, but I see that you’re clearly busy,” Cheryl commented, looking past the raven haired girl to look at Toni. “Hey, Toni.”

“Hey,” Toni returned with a soft smile. She hadn’t spoken face to face with Cheryl since the party, but they’d texted a bit. Mostly about Betty and Veronica, or about their respective classes.

“Yeah, I’m actually going out with Betty tonight,” Veronica admitted, stepping backwards into her dorm. “You wanna come in? I don’t have to leave for a little while, Toni is being my emotional support, and she’s _supposed_ to be helping me with my outfit.”

“She says _supposed to_ because no matter what I say, she disagrees with me. We’ve been through like six outfits, and I told her this one is my favorite, but she doesn’t think it’s _ravishing_ enough,” Toni explained sarcastically.

Cheryl stepped into the dorm, closing the door behind her and sizing up the outfit Veronica was clad in. “I’m with Toni—it looks great.”

“I’m not looking for _great_! I’m looking for perfect, Cher.”

“You look _perfect_ , V,” Cheryl told her with an eyeroll, moving over to Veronica’s bed, where Toni was seated, and lowering herself next to the shorter girl. “I’d fuck you – does that help?”

Veronica grinned as Toni felt her cheeks heat up at hearing Cheryl say the words “fuck you.” Cheryl wasn’t one to curse randomly, and _damn_ was it hot when she did. “Yes, it does.” Veronica looked at Toni with a glare before turning back to her mirror.

“Hey, excuse me for thinking it would be inappropriate to tell someone I think of as basically my sister that I think she looks hot enough to fuck,” Toni muttered. “Plus, I _told_ you that you shouldn’t have asked me for style help. I am not at _all_ near either of your guys’ clothing level.”

Cheryl looked at Toni curiously, but before she could say anything, Veronica was talking again, “Yeah, yeah, whatever. I guess I’ll stick with this outfit if you _both_ think it’s good enough.”

“Where are you and Betty going?” Cheryl asked.

“Betty’s taking her out to dinner,” Toni answered for her, “at a mystery location. Her instructions were to dress nice, which like, V always does anyway.”

“Sounds exciting.”

Veronica grinned. “I’m very excited. Don’t be surprised if you don’t see me back in the dorms at all tonight, Cheryl.”

The redhead smirked. “Noted.” Veronica began touching up her makeup now, and looking through all of her lipsticks to find the perfect match to her outfit. Toni began fiddling with the edge of her purple flannel, which was tied around her waist. Outside in the cool, autumn air, she would tug it on over her black t-shirt, but inside, she left it tied there. Messing with it was currently keeping her from staring at the beautiful girl sitting next to her. That was, until Cheryl started speaking again. “Well, since Veronica is busy tonight, are you Toni?”

Toni looked at curiously at the redhead. “Depends on what you’re going to offer, I guess.”

“Some of the girls here are going clubbing, would you wanna join? I like having someone with me who I _actually_ know more than the fact that we’re in the same sorority—I should probably be closer with all of the girls here, but in all honesty, I just don’t have time to keep up with them.”

Toni thought for a moment, and figured that she really had nothing to lose. She wasn’t working that night, and she _had_ had a pretty busy week of tests and whatnot. “Sure, Bombshell, why not?”

Cheryl grinned. “Excellent!”

“When is everyone going?”

“Some of the girls are already on their way. I don’t mind waiting, though, it’s still fairly of early in the day to go out. Plus, the darker it is, the more likely the bouncer won’t catch a fake ID.”

Toni smirked. “Gotcha. Would you mind if we stop at my place before we go anywhere, though? This isn’t my usual clubbing look.”

“Of course,” Cheryl agreed.

“Oh shit!” Veronica suddenly squeaked, drawing the attention of the two girls. “Betty texted me! She said she’s on her way here—I thought we were gonna meet at the subway station in like, an hour.”

Toni looked at Cheryl with a raised eyebrow. “I think that’s our cue to leave.”

“Thank you guys for your help,” Veronica said genuinely, although the words were definitely a confirmation to Toni’s words. “I’ll text you tonight or tomorrow, T.”

“Hey, text me too,” Cheryl huffed, crossing her arms.

“Yeah, yeah, okay. I’ll see you guys later.”

“Bye V, good luck tonight,” Toni said, giving her friend a side hug before making her way to the door of her dorm.

“I’ll keep my fingers crossed that you get lucky tonight,” Cheryl added, smiling.

“Thank you, thank you,” Veronica laughed out. “Bye!”

Toni and Cheryl left the dorm. “Okay, let me grab my purse from my room and we can head to your place.”

* * *

 Toni should be used to suppressing her feelings around Cheryl—she’d been doing it for quite a while now. But maybe because she’d had to do it less this semester than the past two, she hadn’t had enough practice. The tightly packed subway ride to her apartment found her pressed almost completely against the redhead, and she practically got lightheaded from the contact.

When they finally reached the correct platform, and she stumbled out onto it with the rest of the crowd who needed to get off, she took in a deep breath to keep herself from dizzying anymore. “You okay?” Cheryl asked her.

“Yeah, just, sometimes uh, don’t do great in tight spaces filled with people.” _If you’re one of those people._

“Ah, I understand. It used to bother me a lot more, but I’ve pretty much gotten over it. I just have to force myself to not think about how filthy some of them must be.”

Toni chuckled, smoothing out her outfit a little and tugging her flannel around her tighter as they started out of the underground. “Have you ever been to my apartment before, Cheryl?” she asked curiously, realizing that she wasn’t sure she’d ever made this trip with her crush.

“I don’t believe so,” Cheryl answered, “I think we’ve always either hung out at Veronica’s, or out somewhere.”

“Yeah, I think you’re right. Well, fair warning, it might be messy,” she told the redhead, leading her down the street. Thankfully, her apartment was very close to the subway station, and after just a minute or so, they were at the right building.

“Is the messiness _your_ doing, or Sweet Pea’s?”

Toni laughed, “Whose do you think?”

“I’ll go out on a limb and say Sweet Pea.”

“Ding, ding, ding,” Toni confirmed with a smile, leading Cheryl into the building and up two flights of stairs. “Sorry, the elevator is like, almost always broken, so I don’t even check it anymore.”

“It’s okay. Walking up stairs in heels is something I’ve mastered, don’t worry about it.”

“Of course you have,” Toni teased. When they reached the second floor, Toni navigated to the correct door and unlocked it quickly, pushing it open and hoping that Sweet Pea wasn’t around. Unfortunately, her hopes were crushed when she saw her best friend wearing boxers and a t-shirt, sprawled across their couch. “Hey Sweet Pea. Cheryl’s coming in.”

“Oh—hey, T, okay,” he said in surprise, turning his head to look at the door as Toni stepped in, followed by Cheryl. “Hey, Cheryl.”

“Hello,” Cheryl returned gently.

“We’re going out,” Toni told her roommate, “I just have to change.”

“Alright.”

Toni turned back to look at Cheryl, gesturing for her to follow as she led her into the apartment and to her room. “You can come on in,” she said as she walked in. Cheryl did so as well, closing the door behind her.

“Your room is cute,” Cheryl commented, looking around. It wasn’t that great of a room, in Toni’s own opinion. She had a whiteboard up that was covered in pictures and notes, and that was her favorite part of the room. Other than that, she had a desk covered in school work, her dresser that sat outside of the small closet door, a fluffy blue rug covering most of the ugly carpet, and a full sized bed that didn’t even have a real bed frame.

“Thanks, it’s kind of… lame,” Toni admitted, shrugging off her flannel and pulling off her shoes. She was currently wearing jeans and a loose black top, but if she was going out clubbing, she wanted to up her outfit at least a little. Even if she didn’t really care to impress.

Although, maybe she did care to impress one, specific person. “No, I totally think it’s cute,” Cheryl insisted. “It’s… _chill_ , like you.”

Toni chuckled. “Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

Toni opened her closet and started poking around for the outfit she was thinking of. She found the fishnets she was looking for, as well as a dark, reddish-purple skirt. She was already wearing a black bra underneath her shirt right now, so she found a black mesh top, and now she just needed to change. “I’m not gonna get naked or anything, but you should probably turn around, I’m gonna drop my pants.”

Cheryl laughed, and Toni looked over her shoulder to see that Cheryl had indeed turned around. “Alright. Let me know when you’re decent again, Topaz.” Toni smiled a little to herself and pulled off her pants, then pulling on the fishnets. They were a kind of thick mesh that bunched up in certain spots, looking a bit like polka dots from a distance. She then pulled on the skirt and tugged off her top. She pulled on the mesh top, tucking it into her skirt, and glanced at herself in the mirror she had hanging on the inside of her closet.

After approving her look herself, she said, “Alright, I’m decent.”

Cheryl turned back around and observed the smaller woman’s outfit. “Cute.”

“Thanks,” Toni returned, hoping that the blush on her cheeks wasn’t evident. She grabbed her leather jacket from her closet, pulling it over herself since she knew the chilly air would bother her otherwise. “Let me just put my boots back on and then I’m good to go.”

When they left Toni’s room, Sweet Pea turned to look at them again. “You gonna be back really late, T?”

“Probably,” Toni answered, “I dunno, though, text me before you knock out and I’ll let you know.”

“Alright, see you guys.”

“Bye, Sweets!”

* * *

 “Have you been here before?” Cheryl asked Toni as they waiting in line behind a few others to enter the club.

“Nope, don’t think so. But I don’t have the best memory for this kind of stuff. I usually just go wherever my friends drag me, so if you and V haven’t taken me here, then probably not,” Toni admitted.

Cheryl chuckled. “No, I haven’t been here either. But a lot of the Delta Gamma Zeta girls say it’s an excellent place for a party.”

“Well, fun is what we’re looking for, especially after this last fucking week.”

“Agreed.” They reached the bouncer, handing him their IDs and, thankfully, getting let in without question. It was probably helpful that they did look about twenty-one, considering how close they actually were to the age.

“So, first thing’s first, drinks?”

“Definitely, Topaz.”

They made their way to the bar, each ordering their respective drinks before some girls from Delta Gamma Zeta approached them—or Cheryl really—and began talking. Toni leaned against the bar, half listening to the conversation that Cheryl was now a part of. The bartender set down their drinks, and as Cheryl picked hers up, she seemed to realize that Toni had been booted out of the conversation from the moment it began, so she leaned back slightly to open it up.

“You guys know Toni Topaz, right? She’s Veronica’s best friend,” Cheryl explained, and the other sorority girls just nodded halfheartedly—probably because they didn’t know Toni. Toni didn’t know them either, but she smiled at them anyway, because she was appreciative of Cheryl’s effort to include her.

“Well, we’re all on the dance floor if you guys wanna join,” one of them said, “see you, Cheryl.” They disappeared back toward the dance floor, and Cheryl turned to face Toni.

“Sorry. Sorority duties, I guess, have to be super… _friendly_ and everything.” Cheryl took a sip from her margarita, and Toni wondered how good it was compared to _her_ margaritas. She thought briefly about making Cheryl a drink, and the idea made her warm inside for some reason, but she quickly pushed it away to refocus on the topic at hand.

“So what, you don’t like being in Delta Gamma Zeta?”

Cheryl shrugged. “I like it just fine, I guess. It’s just not really all that I expected it to be. And… I guess I thought it meant I would have some kind of built in friends during college? You know, people who would support me without having to really know me. It’s stupid, I know, but I didn’t have the best track record of friends in high school, Toni. In fact, I don’t need any fingers to count how many real friends I had.” Toni frowned at that. Cheryl didn’t talk much about her high school life, and maybe this was why. “Anyway, I thought being in a sorority would mean that I would suddenly have a lot of friends, and that didn’t really happen. Obviously, I got Veronica, and she’s great, so I’m not complaining. Just… I don’t know, I feel like Delta Gamma Zeta has served the purpose I wanted from it already.”

Toni nodded slowly. “It’s not stupid, I get it. Sororities never were really something I was interested in—it’s totally Veronica’s thing, though. It always just seemed too… _peppy_ for me, I think. Fake. Not that I think _everyone_ in sororities are fake, but…”

“A lot of them are,” Cheryl stated flatly, “so I don’t blame you. I’m pretty tired of fake people, honestly.”

Toni gave the redhead a gentle smile. “Well hey, you’ve got Veronica, and she’s far from fake. And I mean, you’ve got me too, and last I checked, I’m pretty real.”

Cheryl laughed. “Toni Topaz, you might be one of the most real people that I’ve ever known.”

Toni didn’t know exactly what that meant, but it made her chest feel warm and her heart rate to pick up. They chatted some more while they finished their drinks, and then Cheryl set her empty cup on the bar somewhat aggressively, causing Toni to jump a little at the abruptness of the sound. “Should we dance, Cha-Cha?”

Cha-Cha was the first thing Cheryl had ever called Toni upon their first meeting over a year ago, and it had stuck for a while, but she hadn’t said it in a while, so the nickname caught the pink haired girl off guard a little. It brought a smile to her face, though, though most things that Cheryl said could easily make Toni smile. “If you want to, I’m down.”

“I do, come on.” She grabbed Toni’s hand and tugged her toward the dance floor, and Toni tried not to swoon at the fact that her hand was currently wrapped in the hand of the most beautiful woman she’d ever laid eyes on.

_Friends, Toni, you guys are friends_ , she told herself, as Cheryl stopped them on the dance floor and turned to face her, a wide smile on her face as she started to move to the music. Toni smiled back, involuntarily, but bit down on her lower lip to keep from being so obviously ecstatic at being here with Cheryl.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm hoping to not have to do very much explaining in regards to the characters or their actions. I'm really trying to work on writing things that are self explanatory, that don't require justification. But I'm not perfect, and there are some things I'll probably end up explaining. But if you have any questions or confusions, feel free and ask! And although this story is already fully written, I can always go back and change things that haven't been posted yet to make them more clear and explanatory.  
> The only thing I'll say right now is that there will be some ties to things that are canon: like lines. I'm not usually one to use lines from the show, but let's face it, some of the Choni dialogue from the show is adorable, and I wanted to use some of it.  
> Anyway, that's all from me! Chapter 3 goes live Thursday (hopefully in the morning as well). Thank you all for reading, I hope you all have an amazing week!! xx


	3. Whatever You Want

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Toni and Cheryl party on, and Toni learns something very interesting about Cheryl.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Goooood morning everyone (unless it's not morning for you, in which case, good whatever-part-of-the-day-it-is) !!! It's a great day for some Choni, don't you think?  
> I'ma be honest with you guys, most of the chapter after this one SHOULD be longer than this. They should average to over 5,000 per chapter, and lots of them should be over 6,000. I used to consider 2,000 words a good length chapter (back in like, 2013) and now if it's under 5,000 I'm like ughhh too short XD Hopefully it doesn't feel short though, this one is just under 5k!  
> Anyway! Thank you to everyone who's been kudosing and reading!! I really really appreciate it, as well as the comments - comments make my day!! So feel free to drop your opinion or just lemme know how your week's been? :) But anyway, I won't hold y'all up here forever! Enjoy!!xx

**** Dancing with Cheryl was intoxicating. Her body moved like the heavens themselves were guiding it, and that ass wiggled so much, making it harder and harder for Toni to look at the woman without feeling a punch in her chest at not being able to  _ touch _ her. Sure, their bodies grinded against each other’s somewhat, but it was the kind of dancing that Toni would do with Veronica, not the kind of grinding that invited follow up touching. That’s how Toni kept reminding herself that this was platonic.

And the huge grin on Cheryl’s face was how she kept smiling, despite how much Toni’s chest was aching right now. Maybe this wasn’t the best idea, trying to be closer friends with Cheryl. If it was going to hurt her this bad…

But then she thought of how it would hurt Cheryl if Toni disappeared from her life, how she wouldn’t understand why, and how she would feel abandoned by one of the real people in her life. Toni would never be able to do that to the redhead, who she honestly believed deserved better than the lot she’d gotten in a lot of her life.

They spent a long, but immeasurable, amount of time on the dance floor, before Toni was panting and asked, “How about a drink?”

“I could go for one,” Cheryl agreed, and they quickly squeezed through the crowded dance floor, finding one of the few empty spaces at the bar. The bartender came over to ask what they wanted, and before Toni could get a word out, Cheryl had asked for two tequila shots.

“Not exactly what I meant,” Toni admitted with a light laugh as the two shot glasses appeared in front of them, and Cheryl tossed down some cash for the bartender.

“Oh come on, Cha-Cha,” Cheryl teased, “there’s no big exam to study for tomorrow, okay? It’s Friday night, and we’re taking shots.”

“Alright, but I’m only doing it because I know you’ll take both if I don’t and I’m not trying to support a drunk Cheryl Bombshell all night,” Toni gave in, smirking at the woman as they both picked up their shot glasses, tapped them together in mock cheers, and then took back the burning liquid. “God, I have such a love-hate relationship with tequila.”

“What’s your favorite drink?” Cheryl wondered, seemingly unaffected by the burn of tequila as she set her shot glass back on the counter.

“Not gonna lie, I love me a good whiskey,” Toni admitted, “but not usually just plain. I’m a big fan of Manhattans.”

“Of course you are,” Cheryl bounced back, and the expression she was wearing was unreadable.

“What about you, Red?”

“Oh, I’m not picky. But I am a fan of all the fruity stuff.”

Toni cleared her throat a little as she worked up a bit of confidence to say, “You should let me make you a drink sometime, Bombshell. I bet I could blow your mind.”

Cheryl let out one of those little laughs she did when she was drunk, and it tugged a smile onto Toni’s face. “Okay, Toni, deal. You work tomorrow?”

“Yeah, I’m working five to midnight.”

“Well, I’ll be there,” Cheryl told her, “and you make me whatever you want.”

Toni tried not to focus on how flirty Cheryl sounded when she said last line, tried not to replay “whatever you want” in her head over and over again.  _ God _ , Cheryl was sexy, everything about her. Her body, her hair, those lips, her voice. Toni felt wasted on her interactions with Cheryl all night, even though she was only a drink and a shot into the night. “Sounds like a plan, but until then,” Toni heard herself saying, “how about another drink?”

“Weren’t you just wanting us to not be drinking so much?” Cheryl asked with another laugh, waving down the bartender.

“Fuck it, right?”

In all honesty, Toni was definitely going to need to be drunker if she was going to be enduring the rest of this night with Cheryl. Because as much as she loved it, it was painful nonetheless.

* * *

It was close to midnight when the two of them stumbled out of the club, laughing at something Cheryl had just said that Toni couldn’t remember. They were pretty wasted, and Toni was  _ starving _ . She hadn’t eaten at all that evening, she realized, because her plan after class was to go home and eat some of her takeout leftovers from earlier in the week, but Veronica had side tracked her. And then Cheryl had derailed her plans even further, and now she was many drinks in on an empty stomach.

“I need to eat something,” Toni blurted, “I haven’t eaten since like, two o’clock.”

“God, Toni, you drank that much without having eaten?” Cheryl asked, sounding surprisingly coherent despite how drunk  _ she  _ was. “How about pizza? I’m buying.”

“You bought  _ all _ the drinks, Bombshell,” Toni argued, but Cheryl was tugging her down the street to a pizza shop that still seemed open. “I can buy my own pizza.”

“Fine, then you’re buying mine too.”

Toni rolled her eyes. “Alright, Cher.”

They made their way into the pizza shop and each ordered two slices of their preferred pizzas—pepperoni for Toni and cheese for Cheryl—and Toni handed enough cash for the purchase to the cashier. Then they sat at one of the few tables in the little shop as they waited for their slices. Toni took out her phone, realizing that it was late and that she needed to check if she’d heard from Veronica, and she had.

**V-Ronnie – Hey, T! The date is going fabulously! I’m definitely going back to Betty’s, she’s in the bathroom and then we are headed there. So you can get my wellbeing off your mind! Hope you’re having fun with Cheryl! ;D**

**Tiny Toni – glad to hear it, vv, have fun! (;**

She ignored the second part of Veronica’s text.

“Veronica said she’s going back to Betty’s,” Toni announced to Cheryl, “so they’re date is definitely going well.”

“You think they’ll finally fuck then?” Cheryl wondered.

Toni looked at Cheryl, a little surprised at the bluntness of the question. But she shrugged it off and just said, “Hopefully.”

Their pizza slices were set in front of them suddenly, and the two girls thanked the guy as they started eating. “So you and Veronica have known each other for a long time, right? High school?”

Toni nodded, swallowing her bite before elaborating, “Yeah, we met freshman year of high school.”

“I envy that,” Cheryl admitted, “I always wanted a friend who I could have with me for all of high school  _ and _ college. And you guys are so close. Color me jealous.”

“It’s definitely nice,” Toni said slowly, “but I’ve learned that Veronica and I are the exception, not the rule. Most people don’t have that. You’re not out of the norm, Cheryl.”

Cheryl shrugged. “Doesn’t matter. The closest I ever had to a best friend was my twin brother Jason.”

Now, Toni was very confused. She had never heard Cheryl mention a brother, let alone a  _ twin _ brother. The name Jason, she was positive, had never left Cheryl’s lips during any of their conversations since they’d met. “I didn’t know you had a twin.”

“ _ Had _ being the keyword,” Cheryl murmured softly, and now Toni was understanding.

“Oh god, Cheryl. I’m so sorry…”

Cheryl nodded. “Yeah, it’s okay. It’s been a year and a half since… well, there was a boating accident, and it was one of the times that I’d passed on going out on our boat. So it was just him and my father. Neither of them made it.”

“That’s horrible… I can’t even imagine…”

“Good,” Cheryl said, giving Toni a sad smile, “I wouldn’t wish that kind of pain on anyone, not even my worst enemies. It’s… terrifying… to feel that alone all of the sudden, knowing the person you’ve always been closest to is just… gone.”

If there wasn’t a table in between the two of them, Toni would’ve wrapped Cheryl up in her arms, crush be damned, this was the kind of thing you hugged friends over. But there  _ was _ a table in between them, and pizza in both of their hands, so it was just not possible. “I’m sorry, Cheryl.”

Cheryl nodded, taking another bite of her pizza. After she chewed it slowly and swallowed, she sighed and said, “Sorry for unloading that on you. I haven’t… told anyone at NYU about him. It’s just… it happened right after we graduated, so everyone in our hometown knew about it, and everyone saw me as broken. And I felt broken. But when I moved into New York City… I just wanted to be  _ me _ again. So I tried to mourn him silently.”

“That’s got to have taken a toll on you, keeping it inside? And you’re not close with your mom, right? So have you really not talked about this with anyone?”

Cheryl avoided Toni’s gaze, setting her pizza slice down and straightening her posture. “I saw a therapist for a little while, and that helped. But I stopped going after a couple of months, because I felt like I was moving on…  _ kind of _ . It’s not something that’s easy to move on from.”

“Of course not,” Toni agreed, “it’s a good thing you had reached out to someone to talk about it.”

Cheryl nodded. “Could you… do me a favor and not mention him to Veronica or anyone? I didn’t really plan on telling you tonight either just… you make me feel safe… and I’m kind of like, drunk.”

Toni smiled sadly at the redhead. “Of course, Bombshell, I wouldn’t dream of telling anyone.”

“Thank you, Toni.”

* * *

They finished their pizza and then Toni insisted that Cheryl call a cab back to NYU instead of taking the subway, which led to Cheryl insisting that Toni do the same. So they flagged down one of the yellow cars and piled into the back of it, giving the cabbie Toni’s address first, since it was closer.

“Thanks for coming out with me tonight,” Cheryl thanked the pink haired girl as they approached her apartment building, “I had a lot of fun.”

Toni smiled. “Anytime, Bombshell.”

“And I’m still stopping by your bar tomorrow,” Cheryl promised, pointing her index finger at Toni funnily.

“I’m looking forward to it.” The cab stopped in front of the building. “Text me when you get back safely, okay, Red?”

“I will,” she agreed, and Toni climbed out of the cab before reaching for her wallet. “No, no, Toni, I’ve got the cab. You go home.”

“You sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure.”

“Alright, thank you. I’ll see you tomorrow, Cheryl.”

“Yes you will!”

Toni started into the building and up to her apartment as the cab took off toward NYU. It was just past one in the morning as Toni stumbled into her apartment, falling forward slightly as she opened the door, and muttered, “Shit.”

“Hey, Tiny,” Sweet Pea said suddenly from the couch, whatever he’d been watching now paused, “you didn’t text, so I stayed up. Which I mean, I probably would’ve been up anyway, even if you did text.”

“Shit sorry,” Toni apologized, closing the door behind her and sliding her boots off her feet. “I totally spaced, I only remembered to text back V.”

“How was your night of clubbing?”

“Good.”

“Was it just you and Cheryl?”

Toni shrugged, sitting on the arm of the couch. “Kinda. Some Delta Gamma Zeta girls were there, but we didn’t talk to them much. Why do you ask?”

“I don’t know, I was just thinking that it’s kind of curious how you said last weekend was the most you’d talked to Cheryl in a while, and now you went out partying with her all night.”

“Not  _ all _ night,” Toni defended herself, “anyway, Veronica is all occupied with Betty, so Cheryl doesn’t have many other people to hang out with. And we’re friends, it’s not that weird.”

“I guess you’re right,” Sweet Pea agreed. “You wanna finish this episode of Game Of Thrones with me? It’s one of your favorites.”

“Nah, I need to pass out before I puke,” Toni insisted, waving her hand at her best friend. “Thanks for staying up, Sweets. See you in the morning.”

“Goodnight, T!”

* * *

Toni’s phone rang while she was eating lunch the next day, and she answered it immediately upon seeing that the call was from Veronica. “Hey, you better have some juicy updates about last night for me, V!”

“Of course!” Veronica exclaimed brightly. “I just got back to the dorms. Betty took me to a fancy restaurant yesterday and then we went back to her place and watched a movie… and, ah, did some  _ things _ .”

Toni smirked. “Like sexy things? Like…  _ sex _ ?” She said the last part teasingly, because Veronica was always shy about talking about sex, and Toni thought it was hilarious.

“ _ Maybe _ …”

“Dude! Congrats! I’m so happy for you – we’ve gotta get drinks to celebrate soon.”

“Wait, that’s not even all of it,” Veronica interrupted. “This morning… well, we did some more  _ sexy _ things… then  _ I _ asked her if she wanted to be, you know, exclusive. And she said yes!”

Toni grinned. “Ronnie! I’m so happy for you! I told you that you just needed to suck it up and ask her.”

“I know,” Veronica said with a chuckle, “and when I thought about it this morning, I realized that you’re totally right. And she didn’t even hesitate to say yes. I guess I just needed to be bolder.”

“Well I’m super happy for you, dude. No longer single— _ finally _ .”

“Hey, you’re one to talk, T.” Veronica cleared her throat. “Ah, speaking of. How was  _ your _ night last night? I saw Cheryl already this morning, she seemed a little hungover.”

“We went pretty hard,” Toni admitted, “drinking and dancing and shit. Then we got pizza, and we took a cab back to our respective homes. That’s it.”

“Okay, but… ugh, I don’t know why I bother, never mind,” Veronica interrupted herself.

Toni sighed, knowing what her best friend was getting at. “V, you know I can’t go there with her—she isn’t there with me at all, and I’ve been…  _ into _ her for like, a year. She would just think I was creepy.”

“Whatever, Toni,” Veronica muttered, “I just think that sometimes it’s a good thing to get your feelings out in the open.”

“She needs friends right now, okay?” Toni snapped, a little more harsh than she meant to. “So I need to be one of those friends, not someone trying to get in her pants or some shit.”

“Toni, I know,” Veronica bit back, “you don’t need to get snappy.”

Toni let out a breath. “I know, sorry. You’re just being honest.”

“I think you need to get laid, T,” Veronica piped up suddenly, and Toni scowled as her best friend continued, “clearly you’re very worked up over this crush. Have you ever thought that maybe getting with someone will clear your head about it?”

“You think I’ve been abstinent for the past year, Veronica?” Toni asked incredulously. “Sure, I haven’t gotten laid in a little while, but I’ve hooked up with more than one person since developing my feelings for Bombshell, and it doesn’t matter, because sex doesn’t always equal feelings.”

“Well maybe a real date with someone then,” Veronica offered in exasperation.

“V, I really appreciate you trying to help, but I think I just have to ride this out, okay? Crushes can’t last forever. And Cheryl and I are getting closer as friends, and a lot of times, becoming more friendly with someone gets rid of crushes because like, you realize shit about them you don’t like and all that.”

“Yeah? What don’t you like about Cheryl then?”

“I didn’t—I’m not saying—ugh, Ronnie.”

“Okay, okay, fine, I’ll shut up,” Veronica gave in. “You work tonight?”

“Yeah.”

“Alright, so come over tomorrow morning then? We need to properly hang out so I can properly gush about Betty.”

Toni smiled with an eyeroll at that. “Mkay, but we can’t spend the  _ whole _ time talking about Betty.”

“Deal! See you tomorrow, T!”

* * *

Toni got to work in a pretty chipper mood, in all honesty. She greeted her coworker, who was probably already halfway into his shift, before sliding behind the bar and tying one of the black aprons around herself. Her pink hair was tied into two gentle braids, hanging on either side of her face, and she was ready to get to making drinks.

Saturday nights were incredibly busy, and although they should realistically be her least favorite nights, she actually loved them. The fast paced drink mixing kept her thoughts from roaming wherever they wanted and made her shift go by fast. Plus, sometimes she exchanged a few interesting back and forth interactions with customers. Usually, they were guys trying to ask for her number or offering to buy her a drink when she got off, and she always refused with a polite smile and usually a joke as well. Most of the time, the patron wasn’t surprised at being turned down, but the joke kept it from being awkward if they continued to sit at the bar for a while, no matter how they took the rejection.

Tonight went by slower than normal, though, because Toni was waiting for something. Or  _ someone _ , rather, because Cheryl had said she would be there for a drink. She hadn’t said when, but Toni had told her when she was working, so every ten minutes or so, she looked back at the door expectantly.

But the hours crept by and Toni got no sight of the redhead in the bar, so she began to focus herself on her job instead of the beautiful girl who was plaguing her thoughts a lot lately.

Focusing on her work completely, she did her best to smile a little wider at her patrons than normal. It was useful for tips. Saturday nights were  _ great _ for tips, because people tended to be more willing to get drunk on the weekend, and drunk people were often the best tippers. They would toss down a hundred, and by the time she’d gotten their change, they were either gone, or they were shaking their head at her and practically shouting, “Keep it!”

At nine, her coworker’s shift ended, and one of the people she didn’t know as well replaced him. He was probably closing the bar that night, something that Toni didn’t usually do, using the fact that she was in school as her excuse to her boss. Thankfully, they had enough people employed at the joint that it wasn’t a big deal.

At eleven-thirty, Toni had all but forgotten that Cheryl had even said she would show up. Despite being a Saturday, the patrons of the bar had thinned out quite a bit. That wasn’t super unusual, a lot of people dropped by for pregaming before going out to clubs and things like that. This bar wasn’t much of a party place, but they did have some damn good drinks, if Toni did say so herself.

So she began to wipe down the bar counter and straighten out some of the drinks on the shelf. Sure, it would all have to be cleaned again before her coworker could close, but she was pretty sure that cleaning earlier still helped. Toni was so absorbed in her task that when the door swung open, she didn’t even look up—her coworker would help whoever it was, since she was clearly busy with other tasks.

But then she heard the sweet voice saying, “Hey, Cha-Cha.”

Toni looked up in surprise at the redhead standing in front of her, leaning against the bar with her palms pressed to the counter top. Although Toni couldn’t get a full look at her and her outfit, she could see most of it, like the high waisted black skirt that hugged her hips, and the white and red blouse that was tucked into it and accentuated the shape of her breasts – not to mention the fact that it was a V-neck and her heavenly cleavage was on full display.

Toni hoped that she hadn’t stared for too long before her gaze jumped up to meet those warm, brown eyes. It was a miracle, how warm they were, in all honesty. Most people looked into Cheryl Blossom’s eyes and saw emptiness – she’d seen that once or twice too. But being friends with Cheryl was a privilege that came along with that warmth.

“Hey yourself, Red,” Toni replied, straightening up as she set her cleaning rag aside, “you finally decided to show your face.”

“I figured it would be busy, since its Saturday, so I waited a little while,” Cheryl explained. “You didn’t think I was going to leave you hanging, did you?”

Toni shrugged. “I dunno, we were pretty drunk last night.”

“I’m never too drunk to remember promises I make to my friends,” Cheryl stated firmly, and Toni tried to ignore the punch in her gut at that word. The f word. The one that uttered by Cheryl only made Toni want to throw up.

“Well, now that is good to know,” Toni said, ignoring the hurt in her chest. “So, what can I get for you?”

“I don’t know, aren’t you the one who said you wanted to make me something?”

Toni hummed thoughtfully. “You’re right, I did say that. But first, I’m gonna have to see some ID, Bombshell.”

Cheryl smirked, reaching into her purse for her fake ID and handing it over to Toni to inspect. She used the moment as an excuse to check out Cheryl’s ID photo, which was only half as gorgeous as the girl in person. Her lips turning into a small smile, she handed the ID back to her  _ friend _ . “Did I pass, Topaz?”

“With flying colors,” Toni teased. “So, I’ve got a couple of drinks in mind. You wanna be buzzed after the drink or leaning on tipsy?”

“Please, get me wasted,” Cheryl pleaded, “today was a shitty day.”

Toni frowned, beginning to grab the supplies for the drink she decided to make based on that answer. “Why? What happened?”

“Nothing really horrible, I guess,” Cheryl admitted, taking a seat at the bar now and propping her elbows up on the counter. “Just some Delta Gamma Zeta girls wanted me to go to a disgusting fraternity party with them tonight, but Veronica told me that she wasn’t going go, so I decided to pass. And one of the junior girls, Kelly—who hates me, by the way—was getting ridiculously pissed off at how I don’t spend enough time with the  _ sisters _ and all that. And as I’m sure you know, Cheryl Blossom is not one to back down from a fight, so I bit back, and we went back and forth for like, half an hour before Veronica and some other girls got us apart from one another. I’ve kind of been seething since then, but I figured that coming here would calm me down.”

“Well, you figured right, because if there’s anything that can calm someone down, it’s an AMF,” Toni claimed, grabbing the assortment of alcohol that was going into said drink.

“And what, pray tell, is an AMF?” Cheryl questioned, lifting her eyebrows.

“Stands for Adios, Motherfucker,” Toni answered, lifting an eyebrow back at her. “You said get you wasted—which, you won’t be after one of these. But you’ll be teetering around tipsy. I still haven’t been able to judge at what point you get drunk, Bombshell, because I feel like you’re strangely coherent even when you are.”

Cheryl smirked. “That comes with a lot of practice. My mother used to let me have wine with dinner, but only a glass, because she said it was a thing that proper people of our standing did. But I  _ hated _ dinners with my family, so I would never finish the glass completely, I would just keep filling it back up to the top, as discreetly as I could, and enough of that got me pretty tipsy during a normal dinner. But, of course, I couldn’t let  _ her _ know that.”

“Of course not,” Toni agreed, “well, bravo, I suppose. I’ll continue to be mystified every time we’re both drinking, I guess.”

She was just about finished with the AMF now, the iced blue drink looking a lot like a super processed kid’s drink, but of course, it was housing four different kinds of alcohol behind the fruity blue exterior. She topped it off with a lemon slice on the edge of the glass and set it in front of the redhead.

“On the house,” she added, in case Cheryl hadn’t already been aware. Cheryl took the drink, taking the little black straw in between those beautifully plump, red lips and sucking up some of the liquid. She pulled away in surprise after a few seconds.

“Wow, you weren’t kidding, it’s strong,” she commented, “but also really fruity? It’s really good, Toni.”

Toni smiled. “Why thank you, I’m glad you like it.” Cheryl went back in for another few sips of the drink. “Just… watch how fast you drink it, or you might slide right past tipsy and into drunk.”

Cheryl leaned back in the barstool. “So, did Veronica talk to you about her date last night?”

“She did,” Toni answered, “you?”

“Yeah, I heard she and Betty finally sealed the deal—in both ways.”

Toni nodded with a smile. “Bout time, honestly.” Cheryl nodded in agreement, taking another, probably too long, sip of her drink.

“So, you get off soon, right? Wanna get food with me? I haven’t eaten in a few hours, and unlike  _ you _ , I don’t let myself get wasted on an empty stomach.” Cheryl was looking at Toni with those big brown eyes, so open and hopeful, and although Toni so desperately wanted to refuse, she didn’t know if she could physically muster the ability to say so. She wanted to be Cheryl’s friend—to be there for her—but it was hurting so much more after the past week to be stuck there. And yeah, she didn’t want to feel that pain all night, but she also wanted so desperately to be around Cheryl, pain be damned.

“Sure, but I can’t be out too late,” Toni told herself more than the redhead, “I’m supposed to be at V’s dorm tomorrow morning.”

“Well then if you’re out too late, you can just crash at the dorms,” Cheryl reasoned with a shrug.

“Except I don’t have any overnight supplies with me or at the dorms,” Toni argued, going back now to cleaning the bar area.

Cheryl rolled her eyes. “Fine, Cha-Cha, we’ll just grab food real quick and go our separate ways then.”

It made Toni feel better to think that she had refused  _ something _ from Cheryl, as if it proved to herself that she had the capability to do so. They continued to chat through the rest of Toni’s shift, by which point Cheryl had long since finished her drink. Toni’s last duty on shift was to wash out the glass and give a quick goodbye to her coworker before slipping her apron off and coming out from behind the bar with her small bag in hand. “Alright, Bombshell, what are you feeling like?”

Cheryl looked at her in confusion, and the slightly hazy look in her eyes told Toni that she was definitely at least tipsy.

“Food, Cheryl, what do you want to eat?” Toni clarified.

“ _ Oh _ . Um. Tacos?”

“I don’t know how easy it’ll be to find tacos after midnight, but I guess we can try.”

They ended up making it to a taco bell, where they both ordered some cheap, greasy tacos and sat down in a little booth to devour them. Toni was hungry, of course, after a long shift where her break had gone by in a flash, and Cheryl’s hunger was probably heightened by the alcohol in her system. Toni was glad that the redhead had let them each pay for their own food, even if it was ridiculously cheap.

As they were finishing up, Cheryl broke the calm silence in between them by saying, “Thanks for tonight, Toni, for the drink and joining me for food. I really did want to like, calm down, you know?”

“I get it, yeah,” Toni assured her, “and it’s all good, no need to thank me.” Toni hesitated, a bitter taste in her mouth from the words she was about to utter. “What are friends for, right?”

Cheryl gave her a small smile, but strangely, her gaze was unreadable. Maybe it was the alcohol, no, it was  _ definitely _ the alcohol. She couldn’t get anything else in her head—there was nothing else, no other reason why Cheryl wouldn’t be looking at her with those bright, warm eyes after she said something like that.

When they left the taco bell, Toni checked her phone to see that she was still in easy walking distance of her apartment. Cheryl was an easy subway or taxi distance from NYU. “You gonna get home okay?” Toni asked anyway, and the redhead nodded.

“I’ll grab a cab, don’t feel like navigating the underground,” Cheryl decided. “I’ll see you tomorrow when you’re at the dorms, I guess?”

“Guess so,” Toni agreed with a smile. “Night, Cheryl.”

“Goodnight, Toni.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm trying out this new thing where I try not to defend/explain my writing when no one has even said anything about it yet, because I think I've gotten used to preemptively explaining myself, assuming that someone is going to have something negative to say. But like I said, trying not to do that anymore lol. So lemme know how you liked this! I always do my best to answer each and every comment, so I will reply if you have any questions/feedback!  
> Anyway, I'm glad to hear that people are enjoying this so far, because joining into a new fandom as a writer is always scary, and it's been about 3 years since I made that jump lol.  
> If I write anymore in this note I'm definitely going to be late for my first class today, so I'll leave you all will my Twitter: @BrittzandTana , come on over and say hi, or stalk my tweets, or dm me, or don't haha. Whatever your heart tells you! But if you're interested in getting sneak peeks or early updates, that's the place to go!!  
> Thank you all so much for spending some of your busy lives reading this update! I hope you all have a lovely weekend!! I'll see you next week! <3


	4. The Halloween Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Veronica tells Toni about her and Betty, and the gang gets invited to a Halloween Party that maybe doesn't end up being the best idea.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey lovelies!! Happy Thursday!  
> It's way earlier than normal when I update this (okay, technically just an hour earlier but I'm like tired asf) so I can't think of like everything to say here other than thank you for the comments and kudos, they make me so happy! Quick TW, featuring some chapter SPOILERS: attempted sexual assault.  
> I hope you all have been having a lovely week! Enjoy this chapter!! xx

**** “ _ God _ , it was so good, Toni,” Veronica practically moaned out from her bed, Toni scrunching her nose in minor disgust at the sound. Toni was sitting on her friend’s desk, swinging her legs in the place where the desk chair usually was. Right now, though, the chair was pushed away and littered with school work from Friday, when Veronica had dumped her bag as quickly as possible in favor of preparing for her date. Evidently, her Saturday hadn’t been free enough for her to bother to clean it up. “Like, obviously I’ve known for a long time that I’m bi, but  _ shit _ I never thought about how good sex with a girl would be. You know?”

Toni smirked, more amused now that it didn’t sound like Veronica was going to orgasm just thinking about sex with Betty. “Yeah, V, I’m well aware of how great sex with a woman is.”

“I’m glad  _ she _ knew what she was doing,” Veronica admitted, “because like, I was kind of clueless. Which made me feel stupid. But she was so sweet, Toni, so  _ damn _ sweet. God, I could fall in love with her.”

“Sounds like you’re already falling,” Toni teased with a smile.

Veronica smiled sappily as she stared up at her ceiling, seemingly in a daze. “Maybe,” she agreed. “I hope I don’t… fuck up when I…  _ you _ know.”

Toni scrunched her nose again. “Are you really talking to me about going down on Betty right now?”

“You’re my best friend, aren’t you?” Veronica asked, though her cheeks reddened a lot when Toni said the actual words. She sat up on her bed and faced the pink haired girl. “How exactly… do you…”

“Oh my god, V. You  _ know _ how. I  _ know _ you’ve seen that kind of porn—don’t even try to lie, I saw it in your browser history once,” Toni insisted. “Anyway, Betty is the right person to ask, not me. You can’t know how she likes it unless you ask her. Like, some people prefer clitoral stimulation to insertion. Everyone’s different. There’s nothing sexier than your partner knowing how you like to be pleasured.”

Veronica’s expression was of pure mortification, and Toni furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. “Okay, remind me to never ask you about sex again, you were right, you’re not the right person to ask.”

“What? I didn’t even say anything gross,” Toni huffed out, crossing her arms over her chest.

“Yeah, but you’re like… basically my sister. I don’t want to hear you talk about sex.”

“I’ve been listening to you talk about sex with Betty for like half an hour, V, but if I say the words  _ clitoral stimulation _ and  _ insertion _ , you’re grossed out?”

“You said  _ be pleasured _ !”

“And that’s worse than clitoral stimulation?”

Suddenly there was a knock on Veronica’s door, and the raven haired girl jumped in surprise, Toni smirking at the fact that they’d been interrupted during this part of the conversation. Hopefully whoever was outside hadn’t heard the end of it.

When Veronica swung the door open, Toni supposed she shouldn’t have been surprised to see a certain redhead standing outside the room. The only thing that piqued Toni’s interest was why Cheryl felt like coming around while Toni was there—and since Cheryl had known that Toni was coming over, she figured there had to be a correlation. A certain part of her was already fantasizing about Cheryl sitting in her room, waiting for the right time to go over to Veronica’s so she could see Toni. But there was no way that Cheryl had thought that much about it. It wasn’t like she was harboring a year long crush on the pink haired girl, or any crush at all, for that matter. They were  _ friends _ .

“Hey, Ronnie! Toni!” Cheryl greeted brightly. “Sorry if I’m interrupting. I just finished breakfast and was feeling kind of bored… but I can go if you don’t want me to hang out.”

Toni didn’t usually hear Cheryl Blossom back down or sound embarrassed like, at all, so the last part of her greeting kind of threw Toni off. “You can totally hang out,” Veronica said, looking at Toni with the kind of look that would’ve warranted a frustrated response if Cheryl hadn’t been standing  _ right there _ . Instead, Toni just ignored the look completely.

“Yeah, we were just talking about how Veronica never realized how great sex with a woman would be and how she’s—”

“Toni! Shut the fuck up!” Veronica exclaimed, quickly pulling Cheryl into the room and closing the door aggressively.

Cheryl was laughing at the commentary, though, and didn’t notice the pointed look that Toni flashed Veronica, who understood the silent warning. “I get it,” Cheryl was saying suddenly, “the first time I had sex with a girl was kind of mind blowing.”

Toni’s eyebrows shot up. She knew from a few conversations that Cheryl liked girls, but since the whole time Toni had known her, she’d only been with guys, she had… just assumed that Cheryl had never actually been with a woman. Maybe that was part of the reason she always assumed that Cheryl could never have feelings for her, because she just  _ usually _ had feelings for guys. At least, that’s what Toni assumed, and it wasn’t like she was particularly well informed on this subject.

_ You need to stop assuming things, Topaz _ , Toni told herself, as Cheryl read her expression and suddenly asked, “What’s that look for, Toni? Did you think I’d never been with a woman before?”

“I just… didn’t know,” Toni commented.

Cheryl turned her nose up a little. “Well, I have. Last spring sometime.” Now, Toni was mentally scrambling to put that time period in perspective. It would’ve been after the guy she dated at the beginning of the spring semester…

“I don’t remember you mentioning anyone around that time,” Veronica said, almost as if she was reading Toni’s mind.

Cheryl rolled her eyes. “Well, I don’t  _ have _ to report all of my actions on the dating front to anyone, obviously. It was a one time thing, I was out clubbing and I needed to sleep with  _ someone _ because I was still getting used to not being in a relationship again. So, I found someone, and we had fun.”

“Didn’t peg you for the one night stand kind of girl,” Toni admitted, realizing how bad it sounded as it came out. “Not that there’s any problem with it… I don’t… think that’s like… ugh, never mind, I didn’t mean for it to sound bad at all. Just commenting.”

“Relax Toni, it’s fine,” Cheryl insisted. “And I’m not really. I tried it out and it was fine, nice even. I probably wouldn’t do it again.”

Toni wasn’t sure why that made her feel better. It wasn’t a slut-shaming thing, because she really didn’t slut-shame anyone. Maybe it was just the knowledge that Cheryl preferred being in relationships to just hooking up with people, even though that information gave no indication that she would ever want to be in a relationship with Toni.

Toni realized suddenly as she tuned back into the present that Cheryl and Veronica were talking about something. As she listened, Toni realized it was sorority stuff, and she quickly pulled her phone out of her pocket to occupy herself, and also to keep herself from staring at Cheryl like she was bound to do if she tried to listen to the conversation she knew nothing about.

Suddenly, she got a message in a giant group text and she clicked it in confusion. She was not a big fan of group texts.

**Group Message: You, V-Ronnie, Juggle-Head, Sweets, Cheryl Bombshell, Fangs, Kevin, Archie Andrews, Reggie Mantle, Betty Cooper and 24 more.**

**Reggie Mantle – Halloween party this Friday! NOT at the usual Mandrews residence! Shout out to Kevin who scored us access to a bigger place! Address to come later in the week! YOU ALL better be there! Reg out!**

Toni started speaking as soon as she read the text, forgetting that she was probably interrupting whatever her two friends were saying, “I don’t know when I was elevated to the level of being added to giant group texts by  _ Reggie Mantle _ about parties, but I think I want to be demoted again.”

“Wait, what giant group text?” Veronica asked, grabbing for her phone on the bed quickly. Cheryl pulled her phone out as well.

“Apparently there’s a big Halloween party on Friday,” Toni told them as they both likely read the message anyway.

“Kevin found a place?” Veronica asked in surprise. “That’s kind of… sketchy. Don’t you think?”

“I don’t know if it can get sketchier than Reggie and Archie’s place,” Toni stated flatly, “that place is a pigsty. You don’t wanna go to the party, V? You love Halloween parties.”

“Yeah, well, Betty and I were thinking of having a horror movie night, you know like, just the two of us,” Veronica admitted shyly.

Cheryl was the one to say, “Why don’t you guys do that on Saturday and go to the party on Friday?”

Veronica sighed. “Her mom is going to be in town on Saturday, and she’s staying with her that night, so we figured it’s better if I don’t go over there that night. Her mom doesn’t know that she’s into girls yet, I guess. I think she’s gonna have  _ that _ talk that day too.” The dark haired girl straightened up as she looked between her two best friends. “You two should go, though, don’t let my absence stop you guys from having fun.”

Cheryl looked at Toni, and the pink haired girl could see the hopefulness in her eyes. Cheryl Blossom didn’t even have to pout or  _ ask _ for Toni to instantly want to say yes to her, and maybe one day that would be Toni’s downfall, but for now, what was the harm really? It was a party, and if Sweet Pea, Jughead, Fangs and Kevin would all be there too, then it could potentially not be awful. And well, if Cheryl was there, yeah, it couldn’t be awful. “Sure, why not?”

* * *

Toni didn’t really like where her thoughts were going on Friday before the Halloween party. She was in her bedroom getting ready—doing some slightly fantastical makeup to count as a costume, since when Reggie had texted the address, he included that Jell-O shots would be given to anyone who was dressed up. But every few seconds, she would have to set down her eyeliner to recompose herself, because her thoughts were straying so much.

This would be her fourth time in two weeks hanging out with just Cheryl, and this time, like the past three, had all included them partying, drinking. And she kept thinking about how she wished they could hang out while  _ not _ getting drunk. She felt like maybe, as Cheryl’s “replacement Veronica,” she was being used as a crutch almost. Cheryl was clearly hurting about some things, and trying to stay on top of everything in her life while struggling to maintain emotional stability. So Toni wanted to be there for her… but it was  _ so hard _ , knowing how Toni felt and how Cheryl  _ didn’t _ .

In actuality, she really did believe that Cheryl saw her as a friend—that she wasn’t just being used by the redhead. Beyond the times that they’d been hanging out, just the two of them, they’d begun to text a lot more too, like the old times. And obviously, they were usually sober for those conversations, so it wasn’t like they  _ had _ to be drinking to exchange genuine words. So she did believe that Cheryl valued her friendship. But it was hard to think that all the time, especially when Toni felt like she would do  _ anything _ for Cheryl, and she had no idea to what lengths Cheryl would ever go for her. Possibly not near as extreme.

Bringing her eyeliner back up to her face, she swore off anymore thoughts about where she stood with Cheryl. It shouldn’t bother her, because it was nothing new, really. They were  _ friends _ . The difference was that now they were friends who partied together, surrounded by people they knew maybe, but  _ together _ , because their mutual best friend was in a new relationship and had less time for them. Which was understandable, as was this whole situation. Toni just needed to get over this stupid crush she had so she could just move on, as Cheryl’s  _ friend _ .

She finally finished her makeup and then got up to tug on her boots. She was wearing black tights, a pink and black plaid skirt, and a black long sleeve top that was loosely tucked into said skirt. She had a jacket thrown over it, and her pink hair was curled a bit nicer than normal to match her shimmery pink eye shadow and her intricate eyeliner. It was costume-like  _ enough _ , at least she assumed so, and she would be getting one of those Jell-O shots if it was the last thing she did. After all, the entire universe knew that to spend a whole night partying with Cheryl as  _ friends _ , she was going to need quite a bit of alcohol.

As she was walking out of her bedroom and into the kitchen, she grabbed her phone and checked her missed messages.

**V-Ronnie – Have fun at the party tonight, T! Lemme know when you’re home and safe, ok? I’ll be up late, so text late. I’m not sleeping until I know you aren’t dead. And tell Cheryl I said the to do the same. And I’m really sorry I’m not there with you guys, I know you’re probably pissed at me. Maybe this is a good thing for your feelings toward her, like you said. Maybe they’ll die down.**

**Cheryl Bombshell – I’m leaving the dorms now, I can meet you at your place since it’s on the way?**

**Cheryl Bombshell – Toni?**

**Cheryl Bombshell – Alright, I’m just heading over to your place. You better be ready when I get there!**

Toni sighed, looking over the messages again before replying, first to Veronica’s:

**Tiny Toni – Don’t worry about it, V. I’ll text you when I’m home tonight and I’ll tell Cheryl to do the same. Have a good night with Betty. If you want, tomorrow we can do a movie night since you can’t hang out with her?**

Then to Cheryl’s:

**Toni Topaz – Sorry, was getting ready! That’s fine, though, I’m gonna eat something real quick. Lemme know when you’re here and I’ll let you up.**

Toni started grabbing some stuff to make herself a quick sandwich, and her phone buzzed twice.

**V-Ronnie – Yes! Movie tonight tomorrow! Your place?**

**Tiny Toni – Yea :)**

**Cheryl Bombshell – Ok, will do! I’m on the subway right now.**

Sweet Pea suddenly came out of his room, wearing all black and wielding a scream mask in his hand. “Is that makeup your costume?” he asked teasingly.

“Is that mask yours?”

“Hey, you know the lengths I’ll go for a good Jell-O shot. Plus, I like scaring people. Maybe I can get a good jump out of Jug,” Sweet Pea said with a laugh. “Is Ronnie coming?”

“No, she’s staying in with Betty tonight,” Toni told him, “but Cheryl will be joining us. She’s on her way over. I just need to eat something before I go out.”

“Hey, I’ve been meaning to ask you…” Sweet Pea trailed off, and Toni looked over her shoulder at her friend as she made her sandwich, concerned.

“What’s up, Sweets? You know you can ask me anything.”

“Yeah, just… is something going on between you and Cheryl? Like something…  _ more _ than friends? Because it’s obviously totally fine if there is, but I just can’t tell. I know you two have been friends a long time, but I don’t know, it feels like it’s different between you two, how you keep hanging out with her one on one and stuff…”

“Nothing’s going on between us,” Toni stated, her voice a lot less strong sounding than she’d wanted it to be. “Um, we’re hanging out so much because V’s been with Betty, didn’t I mention that to you? We’re kind of being each other’s stand in Veronica.”

“Yeah, but she’s not Veronica and neither are you,” Sweet Pea argued. “Admit it, Toni. You have feelings for her.”

Toni heaved a sigh, carefully finishing off her sandwich by topping it with its second piece of bread before turning to face her best friend. “Okay, yes, I have feelings for her. But  _ she _ doesn’t know that Sweet Pea, and she will  _ not _ found out, not from you, not from me, not from anyone. Because the last thing she needs right now is to lose a friend who’s important to her, okay?”

“Even if that friend becomes something more?”

“It just wouldn’t happen, dude. She’s not into me, period.”

“Have you asked her?”

“ _ Sweets _ , seriously, please cut it out.”

“I’m just saying—“

“You can’t just ask a  _ friend _ ‘hey, do you like me?’ without making it totally weird, okay? And I don’t want to make it weird. I’ve dealt with this for a year, I can deal with it for as long as necessary till it goes away.”

“Wait, a  _ year _ ? That’s how long you’ve been crushing on Cheryl? Since you  _ met her _ ?”

Suddenly, Toni’s phone buzzed with a message, and she glanced it. Cheryl was here. “Alright, Mr. Crush-Expert,” she said quickly, “you need to zip your lips, Cheryl is here. And I don’t care what you think I should do, I’m not telling or asking her anything. So please, just act like everything is normal. Please?”

“Of course, Toni,” Sweet Pea promised, and she believed him. He wasn’t the kind of friend to go behind her back and do something deceitful. And he would probably be better than Veronica at not making suggestive side comments about the two of them while Cheryl was in the room.  _ Hopefully _ .

Toni buzzed Cheryl up to the apartment, texting to make sure she had the apartment number, since the last time, Toni had been with her. She took a bite of her sandwich as Sweet Pea began to look for something to snack on before the party as well. After a silent minute or so, there was a knock on their door, and Toni quickly went over to open it.

“Hey,” Cheryl greeted brightly, stepping into the apartment as Toni gave her room to do so.

“Hey yourself,” Toni bounced back with a smile. “You look very festive.” Cheryl was wearing a tight and short black dress with mesh sleeves, and black and orange tights underneath. She was, of course, wearing tall black heels as well, and had an orange spider brooch below her left shoulder. Toni wasn’t positive, but she thought the girl’s lipstick was also a little more orange tinged than normal.

“Yes well, Reggie was very insistent about costumes. You clearly didn’t try as hard.”

Toni scoffed. “Hey, I will be getting a Jell-O shot for this.”

“Are you sure about that?”

“If I don’t, I’ll have to kick Reggie’s ass, and then I’ll definitely be getting it.”

“Yeah, whatever you say, Tiny,” Sweet Pea piped up suddenly, and Toni blushed, realizing that she’d basically forgotten he was even in the room.

“Hey, Sweet Pea,” Cheryl said easily, not missing a beat. “I like the mask. Do me a favor and jump up behind Archie Andrews and scare the shit out of him? If you can, get someone to video it, or live Instagram it. It would  _ really _ make my day.”

Sweet Pea smirked. “What did Andrews do to deserve that?”

As Cheryl scoffed and began to reply, Toni went back to work on finishing her sandwich. “Aside from just being an overall asshole to me in the past? He messaged me yesterday asking about  _ Veronica _ and  _ Betty _ . As if it’s any of his business? But also, who messages their ex to ask about the relationship status of her friend?”

“Yeah, I always knew he wasn’t the brightest guy,” Sweet Pea agreed with a shake of his head.

Toni finished up her sandwich and grabbed her bag and her phone, looking to her best friend. “You coming with us now?”

“No, I’m waiting for Fangs,” Sweet Pea answered, “he said something about showing up a little late because of Kevin? I don’t know, honestly.”

“Alright, well we’ll see you there then, Sweets,” Toni said, waving at him and giving him a grateful smile as Cheryl opened the apartment door and started out.

“Get there safe, you two.”

* * *

Toni was a Jell-O shot and two tequila shots in and it was hour two of the Halloween party. The apartment that they were in was a large studio, though mostly empty other than a small breakfast table and an unmade bed up against one of the walls. It looked basically like an abandoned studio apartment, and Toni couldn’t help but wonder whose place it was exactly. On the other hand, though, she didn’t really want to know.

It was definitely sketchy, but it was more open than Reggie and Archie’s place, so she wasn’t complaining. And neither was Cheryl, who was also three shots in and who was dancing happily. Toni was trying not to dance too close to the redhead, knowing what it did to her the last night. She really needed to be putting boundaries between her and Cheryl if she was going to make any progress.

Her separation of their bodies multiple times, though, was probably the reason that Cheryl so willingly starting dancing with some guy when he appeared next to her, clearly interested in being closer to her. The redhead laughed as she began grinding into him, and it frustrated Toni, but she knew that she had no valid reason to be upset. She was jealous of something that she had no claim to. It wasn’t like she was the only one who was allowed to dance with Cheryl—she had basically been forbidding herself to do so for the past hour.

Needing to get away for a second, she stepped up to the redhead and asked, “You want a beer?”

“Ooh, sure, Cha-Cha!” Cheryl agreed brightly, giving her one of those beautiful smiles and those warm eyes. Toni smiled back before quickly disappearing toward the drinks. She grabbed two solo cups and filled them both with beer from the giant keg. She definitely didn’t need anymore shots for now, but she could stand to nurse a beer for a little while.

She brought the second cup to her party buddy, who took it gratefully and took a long sip of the liquid.

“Thank you,” she chimed, and Toni smiled again.

“Of course.”

Toni was less in a dancing mood now, and she kind of just nodded to the music, drifting a little bit away from where Cheryl and the other guy were dancing. She stayed in sight of them, though, just because it would feel weird if she completely separated herself from Cheryl. She didn’t know why, but she felt like she needed to be readily available to the redhead… which was stupid, probably.

She huffed in annoyance, and lifted her cup to take a sip, when someone spontaneously bumped into her. “Ugh,” she groaned as some beer splattered on her outfit.

“Oh shit, hey, Tiny!” It was Sweet Pea.

“Hey, Sweets,” she returned halfheartedly.

“Whoa, what’s got you all down, Toni?” he asked. “Is it Cheryl? Where is the bombshell anyway?”

“Dancing with some guy,” Toni answered. “Which is fine. She can dance with whoever she wants to. I’ve been trying to keep her from really dancing like  _ with _ me all night, because the last time she did… fuck, I couldn’t even breathe.”

“Dude, you’ve got it so bad,” Sweet Pea told her with a shake of his head. “Oh, I got my Jell-O shot, by the way. You?”

“Duh. I said I’d get it one way or the other.”

He laughed at her. “Yes, you did say that.”

“Where’s Fangs?”

“With Kevin I think. Pretty sure they’re like… kind of seeing each other?”

Toni lifted her eyebrows at this development. “Oh shit, really? I feel like a horrible friend for not knowing.”

“He hasn’t said anything, I’m just guessing,” Sweet Pea admitted.

“Well, maybe I’ll prod him about it next week,” Toni suggested. She shifted her gaze back to the dance area where Cheryl was, and immediately became alarmed when she didn’t see the redhead. “Oh fuck. Do you see Cheryl anywhere?”

Sweet Pea glanced around. “No. She’s probably fine, though, it’s a party. It’s not like you’re her guard dog.”

“I know, Sweets, but… I just want to make sure she’s okay. It’s like with me and V, we always text each other like every twenty minutes to make sure we’re good at parties. But Cheryl and I haven’t established anything like that, so I just feel like I should make sure she’s fine.”

“Fair enough, I guess. It’s definitely a different world being a hot girl at a party than it is being a six foot three guy.”

Toni snorted. “Yeah, that’s an understatement.” She was still scanning the area for Cheryl, and finally she caught a glimpse of that red hair. “Oh, there she is,” she said quickly, shifting how she was standing to get a better look over at the woman. And that’s when she realized that she was barely standing on her own, the guy from earlier holding her up. But not just holding her up… guiding her out of the apartment. Toni felt a fire burning in her chest suddenly—a fire of  _ anger _ and  _ protectiveness _ , not because of her crush on Cheryl, but because this guy had  _ clearly _ drugged her friend. “Fucking hell.”

She immediately took off for the entrance, and she heard Sweet Pea on her tail—he had to have seen the same thing she did.

The front door closed behind Cheryl and the guy right before Toni got there, but she yanked it open quickly so as to not lose them. As soon as she was in the hallway, she saw the guy guiding Cheryl into another apartment down and across the hall. That door closed behind them, and Toni lunged toward it, finding it locked when she tried the handle. Sweet Pea was next to her in a second, and without a word, smashed through the door with all of his weight.

Behind the door was another studio apartment, this one with a made up bed that Cheryl had collapsed onto, clearly only half conscious. The guy was standing next to the bed looking very alarmed, but the expression was wiped off of his face very quickly when Toni landed a punch to his face. “You fucking disgusting prick,” she was growling, kneeing him in his babymaker and then tripping him under his feet when he was crumpled over, making him fall to the ground. “You think it’s fun to roofie girls for shit and giggles?”

“I didn’t!” the guy insisted. “She clearly  _ wants _ me, I didn’t  _ drug _ her!”

But Cheryl was still sprawled across the bed, unspeaking, and that was not at all like Cheryl. There was literally  _ no _ possibility that she  _ wasn’t _ drugged.

Toni landed a kick to the guy’s stomach before reaching down to his pockets, grabbing for his wallet. When she found it, she open it up and snapped a picture of his ID with her phone. She then tossed the wallet onto the floor next to him. “You better stay away from my friend here—and  _ any _ girl, unless you want your precious dick to become detached all of the sudden. I’m  _ very _ good with a knife, you got it?”

“Yeah, sure, whatever! You’re a fucking crazy bitch!” he exclaimed form the floor, and that earned him a kick to the nose from Sweet Pea, surprising Toni.

“You don’t fucking talk to my friend that way,” he growled.

“Come on, Sweet Pea, we’ve gotta get Cheryl back to the apartment.”

“Yeah,” he agreed, and the two of them hoisted the redhead off of the bed and out of the apartment.

“Toni?” Cheryl murmured sluggishly.

“You’re okay, Cher, we’re taking you back to my place, okay?” Toni whispered. Cheryl murmured something else in response, but it was unintelligible. Toni wrapped her arm tighter around Cheryl’s waist as they made their way out of the apartment building. Sweet Pea flagged down a cab, and they carefully got Cheryl into it, giving the cabbie their address.

When they made it back to the apartment, it was a little bit easier to get Cheryl up to Toni’s room, because she was starting to regain some consciousness. “What happened?” she started mumbling, although she didn’t seem ready to absorb any honest answers.

“You’re gonna be okay, Cher,” Toni kept promising her.

She ended up laying Cheryl down in her bed and then went into the kitchen to grab two glasses and fill them both with water. As she did so, she looked to Sweet Pea, who was washing his hands in the sink.

“Hey, Sweets. Thank you for your help.”

“Of course. I hate guys like that, who think they can do things like that to girls. It’s disgusting. Honestly, if he’d actually gotten the chance to do anything to her, I might’ve actually cut off his dick for you.”

Toni smiled softly at her best friend. “You’re the best, Sweets. I’m gonna give this to Cheryl and then hopefully have her sleep off the drugs. I’ll explain everything in the morning.”

“Don’t forget to text Veronica.”

“Shit, you’re right. Yeah, I will. Thanks again, Sweets. Night.”

“Night, Tiny.”

Toni gave him a smile before disappearing back into her room, closing her door behind her. Cheryl wasn’t totally passed out yet, so she carefully sat on the edge of her bed. “Hey, Cheryl,” she said gently, “can you sit up and drink some water for me?”

Cheryl just grunted in response, and Toni sighed. She set her own water glass down and then helped Cheryl sit up a little bit to drink a few sips of the liquid. That was about all she could manage, so then she slipped Cheryl’s heels off of her feet and carefully unclipped her spider brooch, setting it on her nightstand. She would’ve helped Cheryl into some pajamas, but it seemed like not only a huge feat, considering the drugs, but also a violation of the redhead’s privacy. So she just helped the fully clothed girl get under the covers, and then she pressed a gentle kiss to Cheryl’s forehead.

Toni then went into the bathroom to change and take off her makeup. She also quickly washed her hair and tied it into two braids. Lastly, she brushed her teeth, ridding them of the taste of tequila and beer, and then went back into her room, where Cheryl was definitely asleep now.

Toni tossed her clothes from the party into her clothes hamper and grabbed her phone.

**Tiny Toni – I’m home, V. Cheryl is here too. Some guy roofied her and tried to… you know, but Sweets and I stopped her. Do you know this guy?**

She sent the picture of the guy’s ID to her friend, and the response was almost immediate.

**V-Ronnie – What the fuck?? Is Cheryl okay?? And shit yes, I do know him! He’s in one of the frats, I can’t remember which one. The university can definitely do something about him if Cheryl wants to go to them. I’ll help her on Monday—tell her I said so!**

**Tiny Toni – I will tomorrow, she’s asleep right now. Barely got her here and got a little bit of water in her. But she’s out. I’ll tell her what happened tomorrow. Not really looking forward to having to deliver that kind of news.**

**V-Ronnie – You’re probably the best person to do it, though, T. She cares about you, and she knows you care about her.**

**Tiny Toni – Yeah. Anyway. I’m going to pass out on my floor, obviously gave her the bed and all that. Goodnight, V, hope your movie night is good.**

**V-Ronnie – Goodnight. Text me if you don’t want me to come over for movie night tomorrow, ok?**

**Tiny Toni – I’m sure it’ll be fine, but yea I’ll text you if I decide to change plans. Night, Ronnie!**

Toni plugged her phone into its charger and looked one more time at the sleeping beauty on her bed, sighing. She was glad that she had been keeping an eye out for the redhead during the party, but she was beating herself up for having gotten so far away in the first place. She should’ve been with Cheryl the whole time, she should’ve seen the guy drop something in her drink—should’ve stopped him then and there. She should’ve been better, and she would apologize ten times over in the morning.

But for now, she grabbed one of her pillows and a blanket and tugged them to the floor, sprawling across it and burying her face in the pillow.

It was okay, Cheryl was okay. She was  _ okay _ . Toni had stopped things from getting really bad, and yes, she could’ve been better—should’ve been better. But things were  _ okay _ .

That’s what she kept repeating to herself mentally as she drifted into a shaky sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not gonna lie, this isn't going to be a super dark story, but what happened will definitely be a key part in the rest of the story. Here I am again feeling like I need to defend my work before anyone's even read it lol. I hope you all enjoyed it, but be sure and leave me any and all feedback! And be sure to follow me on Twitter @BrittzandTana , if you wanna give me more feedback, or just to like stalk my tweets, or just to get reminders are updates and sneak peeks and all that jazz haha.  
> I hope you all have a great weekend, and I'll see you next week!


	5. You Keep Saying That

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The day after the Halloween Party.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello lovelies, happy Thursday. At least, I hope this is bringing some of you some kind of happiness haha. It's been a rough Thursday for me, I had a pretty hard test earlier and it totally drained me of all my energy, but now I have another test tomorrow morning and I'm gonna be spending my four hours at work tonight (I'm able to do homework at work lol) studying for it. Also super stressed about some other homework and projects and stuff. What sucks even more is that I'm seeing this girl, right, and we've hung out every day except for one in the past 8 days, but we're too busy today to see each other. #depressing lol it's fine though, I just need to use tomorrow evening as my motivation to get through the next 20 hours lol.  
> ANYWAY most of you probably don't give a shit haha, I'm a rambler.  
> This is one of my favorite chapters of this story, ngl haha. I hope you all enjoy it!!

Toni was woken up the next morning by a groan coming from her bed, and she stiffly sat up, for a moment forgetting why _she_ wasn’t the one in her bed. Blinking a few times and wiping sleep from her eyes, she remembered the previous night in a flash. Immediately concerned, she scrambled to her feet and turned to face the bed, where Cheryl was rubbing her face, smearing the remains of her makeup from the previous night.

When she moved her hand, her eyebrows furrowed a little, even more so when she saw Toni standing there. “Toni? What the hell?”

“Hey, how are you feeling?” Toni asked softly, sitting down on the other side of the bed.

“Not great, what happened? I crashed here? I… can’t really remember… were we that wasted?”

Toni pursed her lips. “Look, can you drink some of that water?” She nodded to the glass on the nightstand. “Does your head hurt? Do you want Advil?”

“Toni, what’s going on? What happened last night?” It was obvious that Toni was not hiding the stress in her expression very well. Cheryl didn’t reach for her water, and Toni sighed.

“You remember I got you a beer? You were dancing with some guy?”

Cheryl nodded, her eyes glued to Toni’s in waiting.

“I was talking to Sweet Pea, and when I looked back, you were gone. Then I saw you leaving the place— _with_ the guy, but you were… barely in control of yourself, and Sweets and I rushed after you. He took you to like, a next door apartment, and you were on the bed, and… he didn’t _do_ anything, Cher, we stopped him, but he—”

“Roofied me,” Cheryl whispered in shock. “Oh my god.”

“I got a photo of his ID,” Toni said quietly, “and Ronnie said she knows he goes to NYU. So if you want to say anything to anyone, we’ve got your back. But you don’t have to decide right now.”

“Oh my god, Toni,” Cheryl said, her breathing quickening as tears welled in her eyes and began to spill freely. “Oh my—”

Toni bit down on her lower lip, not completely sure what she should do in this moment. But as Cheryl began to pull her legs up, wrapping her arms around them, Toni instinctively shifted closer to the redhead, wrapping her arms around the girl. “I know, Cheryl. _God_ , I’m so sorry. I should’ve never even left you alone with some random guy, I should’ve been there to keep him from doing anything.”

Cheryl didn’t say anything, sobs still wracking her body as she let Toni hold her tightly. They sat like that for a decent amount of time, and Toni wasn’t sure whether it was five minutes, ten, or fifteen. But at some point, Cheryl stopped crying, and she melted a little into Toni’s hold.

“I’m so sorry, Cheryl,” Toni whispered again, “I should’ve been able to stop him earlier, I should’ve—”

“Toni,” Cheryl interrupted, her voice scratchy, “stop apologizing. You weren’t my babysitter last night, you didn’t _have_ to be there with me the whole time. The fact that you were keeping an eye out for me at all and that you stopped it from happening…” She pulled away from Toni, looking at her with those dark eyes, not nearly as bright and warm as normal, but not completely drained of life. “Thank you _so_ much, Toni. You can’t understand how grateful I am to you. It’s… _awful_ to know that someone would’ve done that to me—that he got the first step out of the way. But it’s so much _better_ knowing that it didn’t get any worse than that. Okay?”

Toni nodded slowly. “You don’t have to thank me, though. I… care about you a lot Cheryl, you know that.”

Cheryl kept their gazes locked as she nodded. “Can I… would it be okay if I crashed your place today?” The redhead’s gaze suddenly shifted away, her eyes looking panicked all of the sudden. “Unless you’re busy, or have work, or… yeah, never mind, maybe that’s stupid, I just was thinking, like I don’t really want to be alone, but I guess at the dorms there are always people, so I can just go—”

“Cheryl,” Toni interrupted, placing her hand over a paler one gently, and Cheryl met her gaze again, “you can hang out here today, of course. I don’t work today. Um, Veronica was planning on coming over tonight—we’re gonna have a movie night. I can cancel with her if you want, or you can just join us if you don’t mind her coming over.”

“She should come over,” Cheryl insisted with a nod, “I don’t want to ruin your plans just because—”

“Hey, you’re not ruining anything,” Toni interrupted again. She rubbed her thumb over the back of Cheryl’s hand. “Okay? You went through a shitty thing last night, and Ronnie and I are _both_ here for you. _Okay_?”

Cheryl nodded again, staying silent. Her gaze shifted away from Toni’s for a moment, and the pinked haired girl _swore_ that it darted for her lips. Surprised, Toni bit her bottom lip slightly, and sure enough, as soon as she did, Cheryl’s gaze bounced back up. “Um,” Cheryl murmured, clearly caught, “I should drink something.”

“Yeah, that water is yours,” Toni said equally as quickly, pulling her hand off of Cheryl’s as the redhead rotated to grab the glass of water from the nightstand. “Are you hungry? We don’t have a ton of food here—but Sweets can make eggs, so we should have some. I can scramble some if you want.”

Cheryl was in the middle of sipping her water, but as soon as she lowered the glass she said, “That sounds good, yeah. Thank you again, Toni… for last night, and for letting me hang out today.”

“Of course,” Toni insisted, standing. “Oh shit, you probably are going to need clothes, though.”

Cheryl looked down at her self and laughed a little. “Yeah, uh, that’s probably a good idea. This outfit wasn’t really designed for comfort.” Toni went to her dresser, opening it up and looking through her clothes. She grabbed some black leggings and a loose, white top.

“Is this okay?” Toni asked, turning back to hand the clothing to the redhead.

“Perfect,” Cheryl confirmed.

“Cool. You can change in here, and then the bathroom is the door across the hall, I’m gonna use it real quick but then it’s all yours and I’ll start breakfast.” Cheryl nodded, and Toni gave her a soft smile before leaving the bedroom and slipping into the bathroom. She quickly washed her face and brushed her teeth, not bothering with any makeup, considering that she would probably be staying in all day, and it wasn’t like Cheryl hadn’t ever seen her bare faced before. She took her hair out of its braids, fluffing it around. It was still damp, but it would dry in waves if just left it. Looking at herself in the mirror, she decided that she would need to touch up the pink again soon.

That was a task for another day, though, and she left the bathroom just as Cheryl was coming out of her bedroom, wearing Toni’s clothes. The pink haired girl tried not to check her out in those tight fitting leggings, and tried even harder not to think about the fire that burned low in her body at knowing that Cheryl was wearing her clothes. “Bathroom’s all yours,” she croaked out, stepping out of the way and heading to the kitchen.

She heard the bathroom door close and the water start running as she opened the fridge to look for eggs. Thankfully, there were just enough left for her to make enough scrambled eggs for her, Cheryl and Sweet Pea.

As she started doing so, she heard a door open from the hallway, and she glanced over her shoulder to see Sweet Pea coming toward the kitchen. “Morning,” he said, to which she hummed. “How is Cheryl?”

“Shaken up, but she’ll be okay I think,” Toni said softly. “Dunno if she’s going to report the asshole yet, but obviously she doesn’t have to decide today. Veronica said the guy goes to NYU, so she could go to the school if not the police.”

“Yeah.”

“She’s gonna hang out here today,” Toni told her roommate, “and V is coming over tonight, you can hang out if you want, just wanted to let you know.”

Sweet Pea nodded. “Cool. So, I’m guessing you’re still on the same stance for what we talked about yesterday? With you and her?”

Toni glanced over at the bathroom nervously, but the water was still running, and there was no way that Cheryl could’ve possibly heard Sweet Pea’s quiet question. “Yeah, same stance.” She thought of just a few minutes earlier, when Cheryl’s gaze had lowered down to her lips, but it couldn’t change anything. Cheryl was hurting right now, it would make sense for her to confuse being grateful toward Toni to wanting something else. She was _vulnerable_. And Toni would never take advantage of that. “Let’s not talk about it, okay?”

“Does Veronica know?”

Toni sighed, hoping that he wasn’t going to get mad at her for her answer. “I didn’t tell her, Sweets, but yeah, she figured it out a little while ago. I don’t _want_ people to know, for obvious reasons, and I just _don’t_ want to talk about it.”

“Alright, Tiny, I won’t make you talk about it anymore. You making enough for me?” He was nodding toward the eggs now, and Toni turned her attention back to them as well.

“Of course.”

“Cool. I’ll make some toast.” He slid into the kitchen next to the pink haired girl and grabbed the bread from one of the cabinets. As they silently made breakfast, Toni heard the water stop running, and a few moments later, Cheryl came out of the bathroom. Toni waited a few moments, hearing her padding over to the kitchen and sitting down at one of the barstools, before turning around to look at the redhead.

Her face was washed clean of yesterday’s makeup, and Toni, who had only seen the woman bare faced a handful of times, found herself astounded at how beautiful she looked _always_. Makeup or not, Cheryl Blossom was still the most beautiful person Toni had ever lain her eyes on. “I used your toothpaste, I hope that was okay,” Cheryl said softly.

“Yeah, that’s fine,” Toni confirmed. “Do you want some toast too? Sweets is making some.”

“Sure,” Cheryl agreed. Toni turned back to look at the eggs as they cooked in the pan. Cheryl’s voice was softer, quieter than Toni had maybe ever heard it. Even when she’d been talking about her brother, she hadn’t sounded this vulnerable. It made Toni’s heart ache every time she thought of _why_ the girl was so shaken up. It made breakfast sound a little less appealing to Toni, her stomach twisting up inside her.

Toast popped out of the toaster and Sweet Pea grabbed some plates from a cabinet, putting one piece on each plate. “You want butter, Red?” Sweet Pea asked.

“Please.”

Sweet Pea buttered each of the pieces of bread as Toni salted and lightly peppered the eggs, which were nearly done now. Once they were, she split them up between the three plates as well. It had been a little while since her and her roommate had made a breakfast together, especially for anyone other than each other. It felt kind of nice, knowing that Sweet Pea was there for not only her, but Cheryl as well.

Sweet Pea took Cheryl’s plate and set it in front of her at the bar. “Thank you,” Cheryl said gratefully, “for last night too, Sweet Pea. I owe you both.”

“You really don’t,” Sweet Pea insisted, “but you’re welcome. Toni could’ve handled it without me, though, she got tunnel vision when she saw what was happening.”

Toni took her plate of food and hoped that her cheeks hadn’t reddened at all. “Sweets busted open the door, so I actually might’ve had a harder time without him.”

Cheryl lifted an eyebrow, her expression looking a little more Cheryl-like. “Really? I’d pay to see that.”

“It’s amazing what over six feet of pure muscle can do,” Sweet Pea said with a dorky grin, and Toni rolled her eyes.

Poking him in the side, she said, “Pure muscle my _ass_.”

“Hey, not in front of our guest, _Tiny_ ,” Sweet Pea huffed, getting a smile from both Toni and Cheryl before letting a proud smile settle on his face. Toni loved her best friend for being able to have that effect even a morning after the night like the previous one.

“Does everyone call you Tiny? I’ve been hearing it a lot lately, I feel like.” Cheryl wondered as Toni came around to sit next to her at the bar. They only had two bar stools, but Sweet Pea had already started eating while standing in the kitchen, and Toni wasn’t about to argue with him over who was going to sit.

“The boys do,” Toni said, “Sweets, Jug, and Fangs. And I guess Veronica does too, my name in her phone is _Tiny Toni_.” She made a face at it, shaking her head. “They all forget that no matter how small, I’m a huge badass.”

Cheryl smiled one of those little, cute smiles that made Toni’s stomach feel fluttery. “I think Tiny Toni is cute. I might have to change your name in my phone.”

“What’s it right now?”

“Toni Topaz, what else would it be?” Cheryl asked in confusion as she took a bite of her food, and Toni cursed herself for asking a stupid question. Now, Cheryl was bound to ask her— “What’s my name in _your_ phone?”

“I only give full names to people I don’t know really well,” Toni prefaced her answer, “your name in my phone is Cheryl Bombshell. Which, I mean, is something that people call you, so it’s not that weird.” Cheryl was smirking as Toni continued to ramble in justification. “Plus, I mean, it’s not like it’s not true.”

Sweet Pea was smirking now too. “Smooth, Toni.” Toni flashed her roommate a glare, but when she looked back at the redhead, she was still smiling and shaking her head.

“Well, looks like I need to put some thought into this and change your name in my phone, Toni. But I won’t copy Veronica, I like to be original.”

“You could do something like Badass-Toni,” the pink haired girl offered, getting another smile out of Cheryl. Every time one of those smiles appeared, Toni felt pride growing in her chest, and she didn’t even feel the usual hurt that came with having a genuine conversation with her crush.

“I don’t know. I’ll have to get back to you on that one,” Cheryl teased, taking another bite of her food.

“You could also change it to her full name,” Sweet Pea offered, getting an instant glare from Toni.

Cheryl looked at the pink haired girl curiously. “What’s Toni short for?”

“Antoinette,” Sweet Pea said.

“Sweets!” Toni exclaimed defensively, before looking to Cheryl. “Yeah, it’s short for Antoinette. _But_ , I don’t really like it. It’s always sounded too _formal_ to me, and I’m way too casual of a person to be an Antoinette. So please, don’t call me that.”

Cheryl smiled softly. “Alright, so no to that idea. Don’t worry. I’ll do some deep thinking and it’ll come to me.”

“I look forward to hearing it,” Toni said with an eyeroll. As she took another bite of her eggs, she met Sweet Pea’s gaze, and he was giving her a pointed look. She just narrowed her eyes a little at him and then looked away.

Nothing had changed between her and Cheryl, not really. They were friends.

_Friends_.

* * *

The day mostly flew by after that. Toni was actually kind of worried that they would get bored, cooped up all day, because usually Toni never spent a full day in her apartment. She was fully prepared for Cheryl to want to go out after all, but somehow, the day never turned dull for even a second.

After breakfast, Cheryl insisted on helping clean up the dishes, and she poked around the kitchen a little bit, making fun of the roommates for not having very many legitimate kitchen items, despite having a full kitchen. She insisted that as soon as she had her own full apartment, her kitchen would become fully equipped and that she would treat both of them to a big meal.

Sweet Pea had to go to work, so he got ready and then left the apartment, leaving the two girls alone. It was then that Cheryl flopped onto the couch, looking so relaxed and at home that it made Toni’s heart race. She seemed confused about how to control the TV, and Toni explained that everything was on Sweet Pea’s X-Box, so the redhead grabbed the controller for said console and began navigating to Netflix.

They put on some show that Cheryl liked, after Toni insisted that she didn’t care what they watched, and they lounged on the couch watching it for a couple of hours, talking animatedly almost the whole time, about the show or not. It came naturally to them, which made sense. They hadn’t ever been the kind of friends who hung out a lot just the two of them in the past, but they had before gone through time periods of texting almost nonstop. It felt kind of like that, but much better, easier.

And Toni _loved_ it. She reveled in the feeling.

But she also _hated_ it, because oh how easily it could translate into something more, but she knew that it wouldn’t.

At some point, Cheryl got bored of watching her show, and asked if she could see Toni’s makeup. So the pink haired girl turned on music on the X-Box and went to her bedroom to grab her makeup bags, bringing them out to the living room with her mirror. Cheryl poked around the bags for a couple of minutes and then asked, so excitedly, “Can I do your makeup?”

Toni laughed and lifted her eyebrows. “If I agree, you are not putting any red lipstick on me.”

“You don’t even have red lipstick anywhere in here, how would I?”

“Fair point. Okay, fine.”

So she gave the reigns to Cheryl Bombshell, who happily began to do a full face of makeup on Toni. Toni became immediately obsessed with watching Cheryl’s face twist into an expression of focus, her lips pursing gently as she strived for precision.

Halfway through the makeover, Toni said, “You have to let me do your makeup afterward. I’ll see if I can rival the classic, red-lipped Bombshell makeup look.”

“Deal,” Cheryl agreed easily, reaching for one of Toni’s eye shadow palettes.

When Cheryl finally finished, she handed the mirror to Toni to look at her look. It was a bit more than Toni would do on a normal day, but it wasn’t farfetched from something she would do on herself. Which she supposed made sense, since Cheryl had been using her makeup. “I like it,” she said with approval.

“You look hot,” Cheryl stated matter-of-factly.

Toni chuckled, feeling heat rush to her cheeks, but trying to ignore the fluttery feeling that the compliment gave her. “Thanks. Alright, your turn.” She grabbed her makeup and pulled it closer to herself.

Oh how hard it was to get so close to Cheryl’s face and not press her lips to those oh so inviting ones. Toni didn’t have any powder or foundation that matched Cheryl’s complexion, so she focused on her eyes and lips – unable to do her eyebrows due to lack of supplies as well.

“I’ve never thought about how having like, red hair would complicate doing makeup, like your eyebrows, I mean,” she said softly as she carefully shaded Cheryl’s eyelids, the girl’s eyes closed as she did so.

Cheryl smirked. “You mean you’ve never thought of doing pink eyebrows?”

“Hah, no, can’t say that I have.”

“So did you dye your hair blonde and then decide to go pink? Is that why there are streaks of both?”

“Bingo,” Toni confirmed, leaning away from Cheryl as she finished one eye before leaning back in to do the other one. “I liked the blonde, but I got bored of it really fast. I need to add more pink soon, it’s starting to fade. I meant to do it at the end of summer, but I got caught up in like, getting ready for this semester.”

“Do you do it yourself?”

“Yep. It’s a lot cheaper, and I’m pretty good at it—if I do say so myself.”

“I’ve never dyed my hair—if you haven’t noticed, my hair color is kind of my thing.”

Toni laughed at that. “Yes, Cheryl, I have noticed that.”

“If I _were_ to dye it, I think I’d be terrified to do it myself. I’m like, completely positive that I would somehow mess up a lot.”

“It’s not that hard,” Toni insisted.

Cheryl was quiet for a second, and then she suggested, “Maybe I can come over whenever you put more pink in yours, and I can see how it works.”

“Yeah, sure,” Toni agreed instantly, mentally cursing herself for how eager she probably sounded.

“If I were to dye mine, what other color hair would look good on me?”

Toni was surprised by the question, and she paused her actions as she tried to think of Cheryl with any hair color other than her beautiful, natural red. “Uh, honestly? I can’t think of any. Your hair is beautiful, Cher. I mean, obviously if you _wanted_ to change it, that would be your choice. But I can’t imagine you with any other hair color.”

Cheryl hummed thoughtfully. Silence settled between them as Toni finished her second eyelid.

“Alright, so next is… eyeliner.”

They continued talking every now and then as Toni finished Cheryl’s eye makeup, and then she gently added some blush to the woman’s cheeks. Lastly, she grabbed her little makeup bag of lip coverings. She didn’t have a whole lot, just a couple darker shades, a couple of nudes, and some glosses. Observing Cheryl’s whole face, she tried to figure out which color would look best on the redhead. “Can’t decide?” Cheryl asked with a chuckle.

“Do you like gloss?”

“I don’t really wear it, but you’re the one doing my makeup, you can choose.”

Toni shrugged, grabbing one of her dark pink glosses and opening the cap. “Hold still, Bombshell.” Cheryl obeyed, and Toni took in an embarrassingly shaky breath as she placed her left hand on Cheryl’s shoulder to steady herself, her right hand bringing the applicator to Cheryl’s deliciously plump lips. Toni bit down on her own bottom lip as she applied the gloss, and she hoped that it just looked like she was doing it out of focus, and not in efforts to keep them from involuntarily attaching to Cheryl’s.

As she pulled away, she heard Cheryl release a breath, and she briefly wondered if Cheryl had felt it, the sexual tension that Toni was sure _she_ could feel. Usually, she would trample a thought like that immediately, but she let her brain entertain it for a moment. And then she reminded herself that Cheryl was vulnerable right now, after the previous night, and that anything she was feeling could be a direct result of Toni saving her, and her feeling grateful.

“Looking good,” Toni said, finally breaking the palpable silence. She grabbed the mirror and passed it to the redhead.

“Wow. I should try purple eyeshadow more often,” Cheryl commented, observing her eyes closely. “And I like your gloss.” She pressed her lips together. “It tastes good, too.” Her dark gaze jumped up and met Toni’s as she said the last part, stealing the breath from Toni’s throat.

“It looks good on you,” Toni heard herself say, fully aware of how flirtatious she sounded.

Cheryl just smiled, though, and Toni could practically hear her own heartbeat.

Suddenly, Toni’s phone began buzzing incessantly, and she quickly grabbed the device off of the coffee table. Veronica was blowing up her phone.

**V-Ronnie – Dude I’m here**

**V-Ronnie – We didn’t set a time and you didn’t answer my phone call earlier so I just came over**

**V-Ronnie – Bitch lemme up**

**V-Ronnie – Ugh it’s cold out here**

**V-Ronnie – TONI**

**Tiny Toni – Hold the fuck on, V, give me a sec!**

Toni got up to her feet quickly. “Veronica’s here,” she said to Cheryl as she moved over to the buzzer to let Veronica in. “I guess she called me earlier and I didn’t see.”

**Tiny Toni – Sorry, didn’t see that you called, come on up.**

Toni turned back around to see Cheryl putting her makeup away. “Maybe it was while we were watching Netflix?”

“Probably,” Toni agreed, going to check her missed calls. Sure enough, it was time for right when they were in the middle of an episode. They probably were talking too loud to hear the buzzing. “Yeah, looks like it. Anyway, she’s coming up.”

“Cool,” Cheryl said, but there was something in her voice that Toni couldn’t exactly pinpoint. She decided not to question it as she helped Cheryl clean up the makeup. She went into her room to set it back on her vanity, and she heard a knock on her door. As she walked out of her bedroom, she saw Cheryl opening it.

“Hey, Ronnie!” Cheryl greeted.

“Oh, hey Cheryl,” Veronica replied in surprise, looking past her to see Toni.

“Sorry I didn’t see your call, V,” Toni said, “and yeah, Cheryl is joining our movie night. She didn’t feel like going back to the dorms today.”

“Understandably,” Veronica said with a nod. “I’m sorry about what happened, Cher.”

“It’s fine,” Cheryl insisted, shaking her head. “Well, it’s not, but I don’t really want to think about it. The good thing is that nothing did actually fully happen, thanks to Toni. So, we can watch movies or do whatever it was you two were planning on doing before I crashed your day.”

“You’re not _crashing_ our day,” Toni said quickly, gesturing for Veronica to come inside. Cheryl closed the door as she did, and Toni continued, “You’re joining it. And the first thing we need to do is order some food. So, pizza or Chinese?”

* * *

They put on Harry Potter, which Toni knew was Veronica’s guilty pleasure, and the pink haired girl quickly found out that Cheryl also had a major soft spot for the series. It was evident and how she became so absorbed in the film, and Toni couldn’t help the smile that came to her face when she noticed. She’d never been a huge fan of the series, but she definitely didn’t hate it. And she’d watched them all many times over at Veronica’s request.

She popped them all popcorn as The Sorcerer’s Stone started playing, and Veronica let out a happy sigh. “I’ve missed our movie nights, T.”

“Me too, V,” Toni agreed, as the popcorn began bouncing around in its bag in the microwave.

“Did you guys used to have lots of movie nights?” Cheryl wondered curiously.

“Like, every weekend during the first couple years of high school,” Veronica answered. “We made it through my parents’ DVD collection, and then through the ones that Toni had. Then we started renting movies, and once we realized how expensive that could get, we pirated a shit ton. I don’t know why we were so obsessed with movies, honestly.”

Toni snickered. “Because lots of life kind of sucked at that time of our lives, and we needed an escape. And movies are a great way to escape. Plus, we can obviously see how they influenced me, the film major.”

“I wish I could’ve done something like that growing up,” Cheryl stated, turning her gaze back to the TV. “My mother would’ve never allowed me to watch many movies for fun. I had to sneak DVDs into my laptop in order to watch anything, honestly. To Penelope Blossom, movies are a waste of time, and Hollywood is a huge sham of a business, and whatever else.”

“Your mom honestly sounds like the worst,” Veronica told the redhead apologetically.

“Yeah. She is.”

Toni grabbed the popcorn bag out of the microwave, dividing it into the two bowls she’d pulled out of one of the cabinets already. She split it evenly between them, and then went into the living room again, handing one to each of the women on the couch. “You’re not having any?” Cheryl asked curiously.

“Toni never _has_ popcorn,” Veronica said with a snicker, “she just steals some of other people’s every now and then.”

“I just don’t ever need more than a few pieces,” Toni insisted, sitting down in between Cheryl and Veronica. “Don’t worry, I’ll steal from Veronica if you want all of it to yourself.”

Cheryl laughed as Veronica hugged her bowl of popcorn tighter to herself. “Uh bitch, don’t take my popcorn.”

“You can steal from me.” Cheryl nudged Toni playfully. “I don’t mind.” Toni gave the redhead a toothy smile, getting a laugh from her.

They all went silent as they settled into the couch, the movie playing in front of them and the only other sound the quiet munching of popcorn on either side of Toni. Every now and then, she would slide her hand into Cheryl’s bowl and steal a piece of the buttery, salty snack. At one point, she felt her fingers touch the redhead’s, but she pretended like she didn’t notice. In reality, it made her heart jump, and she bit down on her lower lip.

They finished the popcorn about three quarters of the way into the movie, a little while after Toni had pulled out her phone to place their pizza order, and Cheryl reached forward to put the bowl on the coffee table, before leaning back into the couch even more now, ending up somehow a little closer to Toni. The pink haired girl tried to focus on the magical movie in front of her, and not how close this beautiful girl was to her. She tried not to focus on pale fingers that were drawing shapes on borrowed leggings. But really, her gaze kept gravitating to the little movements, and she wished they were against her legs instead of Cheryl’s. Her hand itched to reach for the other girl’s but she couldn’t, _wouldn’t_.

When the movie ended, Toni excused herself to the bathroom quickly as Veronica turned on the next one. It was about nine in the evening, and their pizza was due to arrive any moment. And sure enough, just as she was drying her hands, there was a buzz from her door.

She let the pizza guy up and paid him, then bringing the box into the living room. They devoured it all pretty quickly, but Toni managed to save a single piece of Sweet Pea. And when he came back from work, halfway through The Chamber Of Secrets, he gratefully scarfed down the piece before making himself some more food in the kitchen, trying not to be loud to interrupt their movie.

It was nearing eleven when Veronica got a sudden phone call. “Hey, hey, can we pause it? It’s Betty.”

“Of course,” Toni said, grabbing the X-Box controller and pausing the movie as Veronica answered the call.

“Hey, babe,” she greeted, “I thought you were—Oh, shit. Yeah. No, no, of course, no, they won’t mind. Yeah. I’ll text it to you. Yes. I promise. Okay. See you soon.” She hung up the phone. “So, Betty’s coming over.”

“Why? What happened?” Toni asked, concerned.

“She was talking to her mom today about… _me_ and well, her dating a _woman_. And I guess it didn’t go very well, she wants to see me. But her mom is staying with her, and I guess Betty stormed out after their fight and she doesn’t have the energy to like, ask her mom to leave. So she asked if she could come over, and I figured that’s okay… Sorry for being presumptuous—”

“No, V, of course that’s fine. She’s your girlfriend, she’s welcome here anytime,” Toni promised.

“Cool. It won’t take her very long to get here.”

They played the movie while they waited, but Toni could tell that her friend was hardly paying attention, her knee bouncing in anticipation of her girlfriend arriving. When she got there, they immediately buzzed her up, and turned off the movie. Betty came into the apartment with tears streaking her face, and Veronica immediately grabbed her into a warm hug. Toni and Cheryl exchanged a sad look. They could all understand problems with their mothers, unfortunately.

* * *

About half an hour later, Veronica and Betty had passed out on the couch in the living room, and Toni had grabbed a bottle of her favorite whiskey from the kitchen and headed into her bedroom. Cheryl had been in the bathroom at that point, and Toni just sat on the edge of her bed, opening the bottle and taking a swig directly from it. The past two days had been… insane. Ups and downs, of course, but all Toni knew was that she needed a drink.

When Cheryl pushed the door open a few minutes later, spotting Toni with the alcohol, her eyebrows knit in concern. “Are you okay?”

“It’s been a weird twenty-four hours.” Cheryl came a bit closer to the pink haired girl, closing Toni’s bedroom door as she did. Their gazes were connected for a good few moments, and Toni felt her heart beginning to race. Abruptly, she sat up straighter and looked away. “I think I need some air.”

And that’s how she ended up going to her window, sliding it open to reveal the fire escape on the other side. She climbed out onto it, chilly air tickling her skin, and sat on one of the steps as she took another drink from her whiskey bottle.

She wasn’t surprised when Cheryl ducked out through the window as well, then just leaning against the window sill. “Are you gonna share that?” Cheryl asked quietly, nodding to the whiskey. Toni looked at the redhead carefully before passing the bottle. Cheryl took a longer drink than Toni had expected from it, and then she passed it back. “That’s really good.”

“It’s my favorite whiskey,” Toni said softly, but then she put the cap back on it, tightening it and setting it on the step next to her. “I’m sorry. Today’s been a really good day, but with last night, and just the stuff with Betty… I don’t know, I feel a little overwhelmed.”

“Trust me, I understand.”

Toni looked at those dark eyes, which she could barely see through the darkness of the night. Sure, there was some light around to illuminate the area, but she couldn’t fully read Cheryl’s expression. “Are you sure you’re okay? I mean, you seemed mostly fine today, but after last night…”

“I don’t know. When you told me this morning, I was the furthest thing from okay. But as today went by… I think I’m just happy that nothing did happen, really. You saved me, Toni.” Cheryl paused. “I’ll probably tell someone—NYU or the police—but on Monday. I’m sure that will help, knowing that I can keep him from doing something like that to anyone else. But… I don’t know, I think I am okay. I think you helped a lot with that.” Cheryl pushed off from the window sill, turning to face Toni a little. “Can I sit?”

“Yeah,” Toni said softly, scooting over and moving the whiskey to the step above where she was sitting.

“You know, Toni,” Cheryl was continuing, “no one has ever stood up for me like you did last night. I feel like… no one has ever cared about me the way you seem to. And I can’t thank you enough for that, you have no idea how good it feels to know that someone has my back.”

“You don’t need to thank me, Cheryl.”

“I know, you keep saying that. But I don’t care if I _need_ to or not, I want to, okay? So let me, please?” Toni nodded. She and Cheryl’s faces were so close, their gazes locked and their warm breaths mingling in the cool air. “Toni, despite last night being one of the worst things that has happened—or well, almost happened—to me, today was incredible. I’ve never… felt so connected to someone.”

Toni’s heart was beating so fast that she wouldn’t be surprised if Cheryl could feel it just from their close proximity. She so desperately wanted to reach out and touch the woman in front of her, who was saying so many things that Toni would want to hear. But she couldn’t muster the courage, she couldn’t, _wouldn’t_.

“All day, Toni, I’ve just wanted… to tell you that, and…”

Toni was practically holding her breath, but she asked, “And?”

“And to…” Cheryl drifted off, and Toni saw her gaze shift very visibly down to Toni’s lips. Mouth dry, Toni bit down on her lower lip, but this time, instead of Cheryl getting embarrassed at having been caught, she suddenly lurched forward, pressing her lips into Toni’s. It was like fire all of the sudden, the burn of their touch and the heat between them. Toni felt Cheryl’s hands on either side of her face, moving to tangle into her hair. She felt those soft, plump, heavenly lips moving against hers with such care. She felt her hands shaking, trying to figure out what to do, because as many times as Toni had wanted to kiss Cheryl, she had never fully played the scenario out in her head, because it had always felt too much like masochism.

But now, Cheryl had kissed _her_ , and she had no idea what to do. Panicked, Toni finally placed her hands on Chery’s shoulders and gently pulled her off. Confusion was shining very clearly in those dark eyes, and Toni felt her heart ache. “Cheryl, you’re vulnerable right now, you’ve been through a lot the past day, you’re hurting, you wouldn’t be doing this otherwise, you—"

“No, Toni,” Cheryl interrupted firmly, almost in the same voice that she would use to command a room to her attention in her day to day, but somehow with a gentle edge instead of the usual sharp one. “I know you’ve felt it, too.”

Toni couldn’t disagree there, so she didn’t, and she let Cheryl rejoin their lips. And this time, Toni kissed her back, her hands sliding down Cheryl’s arms and traveling to her waist as Cheryl continued to tangle her long fingers into Toni’s hair. Cheryl’s lips tasted like Toni’s lip gloss already, thanks to their makeup session earlier. Sighing contently into the embrace, Toni was the one to gently venture her tongue into the equation, and Cheryl parted her lips without any hesitation, their kiss deepening within seconds. She heard the redhead make a small noise of pleasure, and it caused heat to pool in between her legs.

When Toni began to feel her lungs burning, pleading for air, she gently began to pull herself away from the redhead, who let out the slightest whimper as their lips fully disconnected. “Toni…” Cheryl’s whisper stirred Toni’s insides.

Toni wanted so badly to lean back in, to take those soft lips in between her teeth, to kiss them senseless. She wanted to do so many more things from that point, but… she couldn’t. So much taming of her feelings was preventing her from giving into them, and that was probably for the best. “It’s getting late,” Toni whispered. “We should think about getting some sleep, yeah?”

Cheryl was searching Toni’s gaze, and the pink haired girl felt herself blocking off her emotions the best she could. She couldn’t be vulnerable right now, she couldn’t let Cheryl see the confusion mixed with desire that she was feeling. She couldn’t let Cheryl know how hard it was for her to wrap her head around what had just happened.

When the redhead didn’t answer, Toni continued, “You can take the bed again, I’m fine on the floor. And I can get you some sweats and a tank to sleep in.”

“Toni,” Cheryl pleaded, but the smaller girl was already standing up.

“I’ll put your clothes on the bed, and I’m gonna use the bathroom real quick to get ready, then it’s all yours.”

“Wait, Toni—”

But Toni was already climbing into her bedroom, trying to calm her breathing as she quickly went to her dresser, grabbing sweats and a tank for herself, and another set for Cheryl, which she set on her bed. Cheryl hadn’t come inside yet, so Toni just disappeared across the hall to the bathroom.

As soon as she was behind a locked door, Toni leaned her back against it and squeezed her eyes shut. Her lips were burning from the incredible kiss she had just shared with the woman she’d had feelings for throughout the whole last year. It felt like she should be ecstatic in this moment, but no, she was confused and hurt. It felt horrible to think that Cheryl could just be feeling a pull to Toni because of the previous night’s events, and that maybe she would regret this kiss in the morning. It also kind of hurt to think that Cheryl had been oblivious to Toni’s feelings until _today_. If she had stayed oblivious, that would’ve been okay, Toni could’ve dealt with that. She’d expected to deal with it. But she hadn’t at all prepared for admission of those feelings, and she didn’t even know how to start that conversation.

Trying to fight off the rising panic she felt, she quickly washed off the makeup that Cheryl had done for her earlier, and then brushed her teeth and tied her hair up into a ponytail. She changed into the sweats and tank top, and then left the bathroom. In her bedroom, she found Cheryl already changed, leaning against the dresser and looking down at her feet. The window was all closed, and Toni’s forgotten bottle of whiskey was sitting on the nightstand.

Cheryl looked up as soon as Toni had reentered the room. “Toni, can we talk about what just happened, please?”

“Not tonight, please, Cheryl,” Toni practically begged her, “not tonight.”

Cheryl looked pained as she nodded, and Toni didn’t want to even consider what might be going through her mind. “I’m just… going to wash up… then sleep, I guess.”

Toni nodded, and the redhead slipped past her to leave for the bathroom. Toni, feeling so exhausted, practically collapsed into her blanket and pillow pile from the night before, pulling her blanket over her entire body. She squeezed her eyes closed, willing all of her thoughts to go away and for sleep to take her over.

When Cheryl walked back into the room, she closed the door gently and flipped off the light before making her way to the bed, and Toni tried to keep her breathing even to keep Cheryl from picking up on the fact that she was mildly freaking out. Once Toni heard Cheryl laying down on the bed, though, she felt calmness coming over her somewhat. They were both laying down, ready to go to sleep. No more words had to be exchanged. She could stop caring about it all for a few moments, just enough to lull herself into sleep. She would deal with this another time, tomorrow maybe, but right now, she just needed sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay for cliffhangers? Nah probably not haha, but I hope you all enjoyed the update. Chapters should stay around this length from now on, yay!  
> If you're interested in getting early updates or sneak peeks, check out my Twitter @BrittzandTana !!  
> Thank you all so much for reading, I've loved receiving comments from you all so feel free to leave any feedback, I appreciate it so much! I hope you all have a great Friday and weekend! xx


	6. Take It From There

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Toni is procrastinating talking to Cheryl about their moment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello lovelies! Sorry for leaving you on a cliffhanger last time ;) ... okay maybe I'm not super sorry but like, it's fine, if you've never read any of my stories before you don't know, but I'm not the kind of person who can stretch a bad situation over more than like 2 chapters. There's enough of that sad kind of stuff out there, you know?  
> Thank you for all of the comments on the last chapter, y'all made me smile so many times! :D  
> Don't forget to follow me on Twitter if you wanna @BrittzandTana ... if you wanna talk or just stalk all my tweets or whatever haha. Also if you wanna get sneak peeks or early updates, that's the place to go to learn how!  
> Alrighty, I'll shut up now! Enjoy the update <3 xx

It was Wednesday, nearly four full days since that kiss.

Sunday morning had happened in a rush, because Toni hadn’t woken up until Veronica had jumped on top of her, and the pink haired girl had found that all of her guests were already awake at that point, Cheryl included. And the redhead had changed into her dress from Friday, sans the Halloween leggings. Veronica had woken her to say that they were all going back to the dorms, and to thank her for letting them crash for the night. She’d promised that Betty was going to be okay, and that she’d be going over to her place later with the blonde to confront her mom one last time together.

Then, Cheryl, who had planned to leave with the other two women, had just placed a gentle hand on Toni’s arms, squeezed lightly, and thanked her for everything. And although Toni had been doing her best to avoid staring into those dark eyes for too long, she definitely didn’t miss the pleading look in them. Cheryl had wanted to talk, but the morning had happened too quickly for any conversation to be had.

And Toni hadn’t stopped the redhead from leaving either, she watched her walk out with Veronica and Betty and then had locked her door behind them, going back into her room to collapse onto her bed.

Her intention had been to sleep some more, in a bed this time, but after realizing that her bedspread and the pillow there smelled like cherry and vanilla, she hadn’t been able to force herself to sleep. All she could do was think and then overthink on top of that.

Since Sunday, Toni had been trying her hardest to focus on things like school, or her two best friends. The latter was pretty hard to do, considering how Toni didn’t usually hang out with them a whole lot during the actual week days. Sweet Pea being on a different campus and then working a lot of the time was a factor to that, and Veronica and Toni being different majors with practically opposite schedules made it hard for them to see each other on campus. Add in the fact that Veronica was, understandably, spending most of her free time with Betty, and one could imagine how alone Toni must’ve been feeling.

She and Cheryl had barely talked in the past three days. On Monday, they’d had a brief text conversation, initiated by Toni because she’d been reminded by her swarming thoughts that she needed to be there for Cheryl right now, after what had happened on Halloween.

**Toni Topaz – Hey, are you doing okay today?**

**Cheryl Bombshell – As okay as I can be doing, I guess. I went to one of the offices earlier to report what happened on Friday, and thankfully they took it pretty seriously. I mentioned that you were a witness, so they might reach out to you. You can give them Sweet Pea’s number maybe too if they want more.**

**Toni Topaz – Yeah, of course. I’m glad that asshole is going to get some justice for what he was trying to do to you.**

**Cheryl Bombshell – I just keep thinking like… how many girls do you think he’s done that too?**

**Cheryl Bombshell – Ugh, I just hope he never gets the chance again.**

**Toni Topaz – Sweet Pea and I will cut off his dick if you want us to.**

**Cheryl Bombshell – As thoughtful as that it, Toni, I think I would rather you didn’t. Can’t have the two of you getting arrested.**

**Toni Topaz – Haha ok, if that is what you wish. :P**

**Cheryl Bombshell – Do you think we can hang out on Friday? Or Saturday?**

**Toni Topaz – I work Friday and Saturday night this weekend.**

**Cheryl Bombshell – Well, would you let me know if you can maybe do Sunday then?**

**Cheryl Bombshell – We really need to talk, Toni.**

**Toni Topaz – Yeah, I’ll let you know.**

Toni hadn’t texted Cheryl again, and it had been two days. Her schedule on Sunday was wide open, she’d known that from the time Cheryl had asked her, but she was so terrified of what could happen during their conversation.

She was being selfish, she knew that. She didn’t want anything to change between them, she didn’t want Cheryl to look at her differently after finding out that Toni had liked her for so long. She didn’t want to go back to being friends and having Cheryl overthinking everything that they did together. It was Toni’s worst nightmare in high school, and was how she’d managed to keep herself from ever crushing on her straight female friends.

Of course, Cheryl wasn’t straight, but Toni couldn’t let herself think that there might be a chance that the redhead actually did want Toni, that the kiss was completely genuine and not born out of desperation or vulnerability. She couldn’t give herself that luxury, because it would only hurt more when Cheryl ultimately rejected her. And Toni, selfishly, would way rather have things stay the way they were than take that turn.

Wednesday night was the one week night that she and Veronica were usually pretty free, so Toni decided to abandon her pride and talk about everything with the dark haired girl. She just needed to get it out there, and maybe Veronica would have some sort of advice for her.

So as she started her walk to the dorms, she rang her friend.

Veronica answered immediately. “Hey, T! What’s up?”

“Are you busy?”

“Nope, I’m doing homework in my room. Why?”

“I’m coming over, I need to talk to you.”

“Oh okay, is everything alright? You sound like, majorly stressed.”

“I kind of am, but it’s not like, an emergency?” As she approached the dorms, she suddenly remembered that, _of course_ , Cheryl could potentially be around. “Do you know if Cheryl is in her dorm?”

“I don’t know, why? Do you want me to get her?”

“No, no,” Toni rushed out. “I need to talk to you about her. We’ll just talk softly just in case.”

“The doors aren’t _too_ thin, so yeah should be fine,” Veronica assured her.

“Okay. I’ll be there in a few.”

Toni treaded through the dorm hallways as silently as she could, navigating to Veronica’s room. She knocked lightly on the door when she got there, and Veronica swung it open without a single beat. As soon as Toni was inside and the door was closed, Veronica grabbed her and pulled them both onto the bed. “Alright, Tiny, get to talking. What’s got you so stressed out?”

Toni felt her heart rate picking up just at the thought of telling what had happened the last weekend. Her thoughts were swirling as she tried to figure out exactly where to start, before she just gave up and went straight to the point. “Cheryl kissed me on Saturday night, after you and Betty had fallen asleep.”

“What?” Veronica asked in shock. “ _She_ kissed you? Holy shit, Toni, that’s great!”

“No, V, it’s not great,” Toni argued, sitting up straighter. “She was vulnerable, looking for comfort after what happened at the party on Halloween.”

“Did _she_ say that?” Veronica asked doubtfully.

“No, but how can it not be true? She’s never shown any interest before, V, and then all of the sudden she was giving me these looks all day Saturday, and then she kissed me?”

Veronica hesitated, looking like she was debating on what exactly to say or ask. Finally, she decided, “Have you two talked about this?” Toni shook her head. “Why not, T? The only way you can work through it is by talking to her.”

“I know, Ronnie, but… I can’t let myself think that there’s a chance with us. I’ve spent so long trying to repress how I feel about her, because she’s never seemed to return the feelings. Sure, last year after she broke up with Archie, I was going to try to kindle a flame with her. But it never happened, and she started dating someone else. And then we drifted a bit, and when she broke up with him, nothing changed between us. How can I believe that now, all of the sudden, she’s decided that she likes me? I can’t… I can’t handle her rejecting me, V. It’ll fuck up our whole friendship, and I value her too much to let that just crumble.”

Veronica sighed. “Can I be honest with you, Toni?”

Toni nodded.

“You are being very closed minded right now. Yes, feelings can pop up out of nowhere, but if I’m being honest, liking a friend is one of the hardest situations to navigate. Cheryl was in a relationship when she met you Toni, so even if she thought she felt something for you, she wouldn’t have pursued it. And like you said, you’ve tried to repress your feelings, so what if she’s had no idea that you’ve felt anything for her? You’re such a bubbly, caring person, Toni, sometimes its so hard to tell if you like someone as more than a friend or not. You know that _I_ used to think you liked me, back in like, sophomore year?”

Toni’s eyes widened. “Shit, really?”

“Yeah, and I was freaking out, because I _didn’t_ like you that way. I remember I went running to Sweet Pea and I demanded to know if you had said anything about liking me, and he had started laughing. He said that what I was noticing what just your personality, and that it could easily be mistaken for interest. I was relieved, of course, but you don’t know what Cheryl has ever felt for you or not, not until you talk to her.

“And to be even more honest, if you ask me, Cheryl has been more excited to hang out with you during these past couple of weeks than she ever was to hang out with me. She came up to me on Friday before the party in her Halloween getup and asked if I thought you’d like it.” Veronica took in a breath. “I’m not saying that I one-hundred percent believe she likes you that way, not necessarily. But I wouldn’t be surprised, Toni, especially if _she_ kissed _you_ . I just… I don’t think that feelings like that necessarily appear in one day, even after what almost happened to her, unless there was already root for them to grow from. If it had been me in Cheryl’s place on Friday, I definitely would have _not_ kissed you the next night. Sorry not sorry.”

Toni smiled at that, looking down at her lap as the smile almost immediately fell from her lips. “I don’t want to lose her, V. I’m afraid that I will, if she doesn’t actually feel the same way. And I can barely let myself imagine the alternative, that she _does_ feel the same way, because I’ve spent so long forcing myself to not imagine it.”

“Toni.” The pink haired girl looked up to meet her friend’s eyes. “You need to talk to her.”

“What if I just need more time? To think about what I want to say to her?”

Veronica frowned. “Toni, I know you. You’re always so carefree, _unless_ you’re anxious about something, at which point you will get stuck in a literal hurricane of messy thoughts. And you haven’t learned how to navigate them by yourself yet—you’ll never get out on your own. So I’m here telling you, T, that you _need_ to talk to Cheryl. As soon as possible.”

Toni sighed, but then nodded. Of course, Veronica was right, but Toni didn’t want to mess this up. She was bound to keep overthinking, but the least she could do was reach out to Cheryl now, to make plans to actually talk.

So on her way back to her own apartment, she texted the redhead.

**Toni Topaz – I’m free Sunday, just let me know what time and where you want to meet.**

**Cheryl Bombshell – Noon? And would it be okay if I came over, or would you rather meet up at a Starbucks or something?**

**Toni Topaz – You can come over, and noon works.**

**Cheryl Bombshell – Excellent, I will see you Sunday.**

* * *

The week went by painfully slow, because all Toni could think about what how she was going to word the things she needed to say to Cheryl on Sunday.

“Yeah, so, I’ve basically been crushing on you ever since I laid my eyes on you, and it seemed like you never really reciprocated those feelings since you just kept on getting with guys and then you apparently fucked a random girl but never thought to ask me out, so yeah.”

No, that was definitely too harsh, because even if the thought did make Toni a little jealous, it wasn’t like Cheryl had done any of those things in any sort of spiteful way.

“I’ve had feelings for you since I met you, I think you’re easily the most beautiful person I’ve ever met and I really need that kiss from Saturday to be genuine or else I don’t know if we can go back to being friends because I’m seriously in so deep with you so much so that I haven’t had feelings for anyone else since I met you.”

No, definitely too desperate sounding.

And then there was her recurring thought that Toni should just deny having feelings for Cheryl for a year.

“What? No, I totally wasn’t crushing on you when I was texting you nonstop through winter break last year, and I totally didn’t practically get drunk on dancing with you, and I totally didn’t feel the sexual tension on Saturday, and I definitely didn’t want you to kiss me that night.”

Not only were those words that Toni wasn’t sure she’d be able to say, but even if she somehow did manage to, she knew they wouldn’t sound honest. Toni wasn’t great at lying, especially to people she cared about.

So many of these scenarios played through her head on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. When she got to work on Saturday, she did her best to push thoughts of Cheryl and their impending conversation away, focusing on the repetitive task of serving drinks.

It was a particularly good night at the bar, and a couple of pretty drunk patrons gave her very sizeable tips. She heard tidbits of lots of humorous Saturday night conversations, and by the time her shift was drawing to a close, she was feeling a lot lighter than she had coming into it.

It was about ten minutes before midnight, and Toni had relinquished the task of making drinks to her coworker while she started to clean things up. It was her usual evening shift routine. She focused in on her task, willing the last ten minutes to go by quickly so she could hurry home and pass out. As enjoyable as her job was, it always left her pretty worn out.

She was blocking out the sound around her, so she couldn’t fully hear the patrons talking at the other end of the bar, and she definitely didn’t hear the door swing open. In fact, she probably wouldn’t have heard the customer who walked in if it wasn’t a voice that so easily captured her attention.

She looked up in complete surprise, the girl she’d been dreading talking to standing right in front of her. “Shit, Cheryl, what are you doing here?” she heard herself ask before she could really think of what to say. “I mean, sorry, you scared me. I didn’t expect you to show up here.”

Cheryl nodded, her palms on the counter, and her eyes hazy. “Yeah, sorry, I just… fuck, I’m really drunk, TT.”

_TT_. That was new, Toni noted. “How drunk, Cheryl?”

“There was a party, I had _lots_ . Lots and lots.” Cheryl nodded seriously, as though her words had very accurately expressed how much she’d had to drink. “And I wanted to talk to you. I wanted to talk to you _all_ week, Toni.” Toni noticed her fingers gripping against the counter as she swayed slightly, and she wasn’t sure if she’d ever seen Cheryl this intoxicated. Normally, Cheryl could maintain a steady stance and was pretty coherent. And right now, though she definitely wasn’t _incoherent_ , she was nowhere near the state she would be in after going slightly past tipsy.

“I know, Cheryl,” Toni said quietly. “Give me ten minutes, I’m about to get off, and then—”

“Toni,” her coworker piped up suddenly, clearly noticing that something was going on, “you can go ahead and go. Get her home.”

Toni didn’t know who her coworker thought Cheryl was to her, but she appreciated the thought, and she nodded gratefully. She took her apron off, grabbed her bag, and came around the counter. “Come on, Red.”

“Where are we gonna go?” Cheryl asked, turning around but keeping her grip on the countertop.

“I can get us a cab back to NYU to get you back to your dorm,” Toni suggested, but the look on Cheryl’s face told her that that wasn’t what she wanted. “What?”

“Can I go back to your place? Please, TT?”

Toni’s face softened at the pleading look that Cheryl was giving her. “Fine. You better not throw up in my bed.” A silly grin appeared on Cheryl’s face, and she released her hold on the counter, taking a step away from it and almost losing her balance. “Geez, Cher, why on earth did you drink so much?”

“Bad day, and… I was lonely,” Cheryl stated, sounding eerily sober all of the sudden, though she obviously wasn’t. Toni grabbed Cheryl’s hand, feeling that perfect, soft, pale skin underneath hers as she carefully guided the redhead out of the bar. She hailed a cab once they were outside. “I always feel lonely around people,” Cheryl was continuing, back to sounding drunk, “but not around you, TT. You don’t make me feel lonely.”

“I’m glad,” Toni murmured as a cab pulled up in front of them. “Come on, Bombshell, get in the cab.”

Cheryl slid into the vehicle and Toni followed, giving the cabbie her address. She worked within walking distance of her apartment, but she wasn’t about to walk a very unstable Cheryl Blossom even just a few blocks. So the drive was short and silent, and when they got there, Toni paid the driver and gave him a quick thank you before carefully helping Cheryl out of the car.

They made it up to the apartment, and Toni managed to get the drunk woman to drink some water before she let her collapse into her bed. “Your bed is so, so comfy, TT,” Cheryl murmured into her pillow.

“I know.”

Cheryl flopped over so that she could look up at Toni from the bed. “You can sleep in the bed too, you don’t have to take the floor.”

“I’ll think about it,” Toni said, which wasn’t true, but she knew better than to argue with drunk people. “I’ve gotta eat something before I sleep, okay, so why don’t you just go to sleep, I’ll be in here in a little bit.”

“Mkay,” Cheryl murmured, cuddling into Toni’s blankets. Toni flipped the light switch in her room and left it, closing the door behind her.

Once she was in the kitchen, reheating some leftover takeout, she heard Sweet Pea’s door open. “Uh, was that Cheryl I heard?” he asked, joining Toni in the kitchen.

“Yeah. She showed up at the bar wasted—like, literally more wasted than I’ve ever seen her.”

Sweet Pea furrowed her eyebrows in concern. “Is she okay? Why was she so drunk?” Toni kept her gaze on the microwave, not wanting to explain everything to Sweet Pea, but knowing that it would be the right thing to do. He was her best friend, after all. “Toni, what are you not telling me?”

“Last weekend,” Toni said softly, “Cheryl kissed me. Saturday night, after all the shit with Betty happened. And we haven’t really talked about it yet. I told her we could talk tomorrow, and when she came into the bar tonight, she said that she’s been lonely all week and that she’s been wanting to talk to me.”

“Shit, that’s tough. I know that must be… really hard to wrap your head around.”

Toni found herself surprised by the fact that Sweet Pea seemed to understand her point of view, unlike Veronica. “Yeah, tell me about it.”

“But you know that talking to her is the only way to get past it. As hard as it is, and no matter what happens, it’s the only way to get through stuff like this.”

“Yeah,” Toni said quietly, grabbing her finished food from the microwave and opening the little container to start shoveling it into her mouth. “I’m gonna talk to her tomorrow, after giving her a bunch of water and Advil, probably.”

“I hope it all goes okay. I’ll be here all day tomorrow, if you end up needing to vent or just block out the rest of the world.”

Toni smiled gratefully at her roommate. “Thanks, Sweets. I’m gonna shower and then pass out on the floor again. She asked me to sleep in the bed with her, but she’s way too drunk for me to do that.”

Sweet Pea chuckled. “Drunk girls are so hard to deal with, I’m impressed with you.”

“Maybe I’m better at it than you are because I’ve been a drunk girl many times before.”

“Oh that’s definitely it,” he teased back. “Alright. I was just waiting up for you to get back, so I’m probably gonna knock out too. Goodnight, Tiny.”

“Night, Sweets.”

* * *

Toni woke up before Cheryl did the next morning, and she was kind of grateful for that. It gave her some time to pull herself together. She washed up in the bathroom and changed into more presentable clothes. At that point, Cheryl still wasn’t awake yet, so Toni busied herself with making some breakfast—eggs and toast, the two easiest breakfast options.

When she was done, she made herself a plate and ate her breakfast silently. It was early, she’d realized, which is why neither Sweet Pea nor Cheryl had woken up yet. But Toni was anxious, and that was probably why she’d awoken.

She put the rest of the eggs in the fridge and then peeked back into her room. Cheryl had shifted positions, but she was still asleep. Sighing, Toni went back into the living room, flopping onto the couch.

An indeterminate amount of time later, she was suddenly waking up, surprised that she’d fallen asleep in the first place. And what had woken her up was her beautiful, redheaded guest sitting down on the couch by Toni’s feet.

She was still wearing the same clothes she was in the night before, but it looked like she’d definitely used Toni’s bathroom, because her face was washed clean of makeup and her hair was up in a bun. Toni blinked a few times, her gaze focusing more steadily on the girl. “Shit,” she muttered.

“Hey,” Cheryl said softly, “sorry for waking you.”

“It’s fine, I didn’t mean to fall back asleep,” Toni insisted, sitting up and pulling her feet toward her and away from Cheryl. “How are you feeling? Do you need Advil?”

“Actually, I saw it in the bathroom and I already took some,” Cheryl admitted sheepishly, “my head was kind of killing me. Still is, but it’ll kick in. Sorry, I should’ve asked first.”

“No, you’re fine,” Toni promised. “But you don’t feel sick or anything?”

Cheryl shook her head. “Honestly, though, I do barely remember everything that happened last night. I remember leaving the party I was at, I remember getting to your bar. I don’t really remember what I said to you, but I remember you bringing me back here. It’s all kind of a blur. I’m truly sorry for being such a hassle.”

“Hey, it’s okay,” Toni insisted. “You told me that you had a bad day and were lonely and that that was why you drank so much. And you told me that you’d been wanting to talk to me all week, which… I know, and I’m sorry I haven’t really reached out to you to talk. I’ve been kind of… stressed. About what I was going to say to you.”

“Well, let me go first then,” Cheryl offered, surprising the pink haired girl. This whole time, she had been preparing what she was going to say to Cheryl, not even really considering that the redhead might want to get her piece in first. Toni just nodded, and Cheryl took in a breath. “Look, Toni, I heard what you said on Saturday night last week, about me being vulnerable that day and kissing you because of… the heat of the moment, or whatever. But Toni… it wasn’t that, okay? If it was, I would’ve woken up regretting it. I would be regretting it right now. But I _don’t_ regret it, and I don’t want you to think that I do. And these past few weeks that we’ve been getting closer, especially after kind of drifting apart this summer, I’ve been… considering, what it might be like if you and I… I don’t know, attempted to be… more than friends.”

Cheryl finished her speech on a strong note, despite how many times she hesitated in her last sentence, and Toni felt her heart pounding. But she knew that she needed to say her piece, too, because Cheryl didn’t _understand_. She didn’t know that Toni had been feeling things for her for a year now. And that could very possibly change how Cheryl felt on this topic.

“Toni?”

The pink haired girl took in a deep breath. “My turn, okay?”

“Yeah.”

“I don’t want you to think that the reason I stopped you on Saturday was because I didn’t want to kiss you,” Toni said softly, “because I did, _god_ , of course I did. But Cher, I have to be honest with you…” She bit down on her lower lip, worry probably etched into her face. Cheryl was looking at her with such softness, though, such care, that she was able to take in a breath and actually continue. “I’ve wanted to kiss you since I met you. Literally since the first day that Veronica introduced us to each other. But you were with Archie then, so obviously I didn’t try to go after you or anything. But… I’ve… I’ve had feelings for you, Cheryl, ever since then. And I’ve never told you, because after seeing you go through two relationships, and never really showing any interest in me, I just told myself that it wasn’t possible, that you couldn’t feel that way toward me.”

Cheryl listened so carefully—Toni could tell that she was focusing with every fiber of her being on what Toni was saying. The smaller girl’s heart was pounding, having run out of words to say. Cheryl took in a shaky breath as she realized that Toni had finished. “All that time?” was her soft reply.

Toni nodded slowly, and suddenly, a rush of words hit her. “Ugh, Cheryl. You’re incredible, you know? I admire how hard you work at school, how passionate you are about everything you do. I admire how you can stand up for yourself. I admire how you can open up the softer side of yourself to your friends, despite everything you’ve been through and the hard shell that you keep facing the rest of the world. I really do admire you, Cheryl, and I would much rather us be friends, and me getting over my feelings, than rushing into something if you aren’t sure about it. Because I don’t want to lose you, Cher.”

“Toni,” Cheryl began, “I—”

Suddenly, the sound of a door opening from the hallway behind them interrupted the redhead. Sweet Pea walked out from the hallway, stretching his arms over his head, and then turned to look at the two girls. “Morning.” He walked into the kitchen, both girls just watching him. He looked at them in confusion, and then realized. “Oh shit, I’m interrupting something. Yeah, okay. Just, gimme a sec, I’m just gonna grab a yogurt.” He opened the fridge, grabbed said yogurt and then a spoon, and quickly fled back to his room.

Toni let out a light laugh, shaking her head and bringing a hand to her forehead, rubbing it slightly before running her fingers through her hair. Finally, she brought her gaze back to Cheryl’s. The redhead took a breath, and resumed what it was she was going to say before, “I want to be honest with you, Toni, and say that I didn’t know you’d liked me all that time. I also want you to know that I can understand, because it’s never felt that farfetched. Has it? But I have to apologize to you. I should’ve noticed.”

Toni shook her head. “No, you shouldn’t have. I was keeping it under wraps, I didn’t _want_ you to know. We’re friends, Cheryl, and like I said, I wouldn’t want to fuck that up.”

“Why does it have to get fucked up?” Cheryl demanded, her voice stronger now. “We’re friends, yes, which means that we know we can get along with each other, that we have things to talk about, that we enjoy each other’s company. And you have feelings for me, and I have feelings for you, and I think the past couple of weekends has showed us that we have physical chemistry as well as conversational chemistry.”

Toni took in a breath, understanding what Cheryl meant. She hadn’t really thought any of these scenarios through this far, because she hadn’t imagined that Cheryl would be so insistent on… trying something. They hadn’t even put words to it yet. “I see what you’re saying.”

Cheryl bit down on her lower lip. “Toni. I like you, as _more_ than a friend. And I may not have had these feelings for as long as you have, but they’re there, and they’re not going to go away. They’ve been building for weeks, and they haven’t faded once. Okay?”

Toni found herself staring at that lip for a few long seconds before she returned her gaze to Cheryl’s dark eyes, which were pleading with her, like the previous weekend. Toni let out a breath. “Alright, Bombshell,” she said slowly, trying to build her confidence despite her pounding heart, “let’s try this. A date—not a party or anything like that. This Friday. And if it crashes and burns, we go back to being friends before we lose that. If it goes well…”

“Then we take it from there,” Cheryl finished in agreement. “You’ve got yourself a deal, Topaz.”

Toni felt a smile coming to her face, because suddenly, her anxiety was gone. Well, most of it anyway. There was a chance… something she had never even really dreamed of having with Cheryl “Bombshell” Blossom. But it was there, they were taking it, and _god_ , it felt so damn good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I feel like it's fair for me to say that most Choni stories on here (or at least most of the long ones I've read) are pretty angsty. I'll be the first to say that I do not really write angst lol. Like I said in my previous note, there's a lot of that already. That said, obviously we still have 9 chapters left, there's still a lot that's gonna happen. I hope you guys are excited for the ride, because I'm excited to take you on it!! :D  
> Feedback is always appreciated, but I appreciate you all for just being here and reading anyway! So thank you all so much! Have a lovely weekend, and I'll see you all next Thursday!


	7. Closing in Closer to You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cheryl and Toni are getting excited for their first date, and it happens.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Haaaappy Friday lovelies, loool I totally spaced on updating this yesterday and that's totally my bad. Yesterday was National Coming Out Day (or as my girlfriend has dubbed it: Gay Christmas) and my university has a couple events which kinda took up some of my free time and also I spent another hour of my free time watching Riverdale so I could stop avoiding Twitter, and then I totally should've updated at work but I just totally spaced and it's fine please don't hate me XD This is a really long and really good chapter so hopefully you all can forgive me for it being late haha. Enjoy!! xx

**** Cheryl had left after Toni insisted that she eat some of the eggs she’d made earlier, and although things after their conversation could have easily turned awkward, they hadn’t. Cheryl talked briefly about the party from the night before **_―_ ** how she’d witnessed Reggie ripping off his shirt to do a keg stand. Toni teased her about finally seeing her truly wasted the night before. It was easy, as per usual.

But, yes, Cheryl had left, insisting that she didn’t want to impose on Toni all day like she had the night before, and also saying that she had homework to do. And Toni believed it, because with midterms officially over, it was the homestretch to finals, a week into November. Thankfully, there was just a week and a half before Thanksgiving Break from classes. NYU only gave Wednesday through Friday off, but it was still a welcomed break after the bulk of the semester had passed.

So Toni used most of the early part of the day working on her own homework before she got a phone call from Veronica. She actually denied the first one, too focused on her work, but when the woman called again, she gave in and answered. “Hey, V, what’s up?”

“What do you mean what’s up? Did you talk to Cheryl, or what?”

Toni blinked **_―_ ** she had totally spaced on telling her best friends about the new development, the chance that she and Cheryl were taking. “Oh, shit yeah. I forgot to tell you. She came into the bar last night, totally wasted, and I took her home and put her to bed, because yeah, she was drunk and didn’t want to go back to the dorms. I was kind of freaking out, and this morning, once she was up, yeah, we talked.”

“And? How did it go? What did you say? What did  _ she _ say? God, Toni, I’m dying here just answer me!”

“Dude, chill,” Toni hushed her. “She told me that she feels like her feelings for me, and why she kissed me, is beyond just need comfort and everything after Halloween. She said she’s been feeling it build since we’ve started hanging out and texting more this past couple of weeks. And then I told her how long I’ve been had feelings for her.”

“And did it psych her out?” Veronica demanded to know.

Toni felt a small smile playing on her face. “No. She was the one who was being more adamant that we give something  _ more _ than friendship a shot. I told her what my fears were about it, so she knows why I was hesitant. But we agreed… I’m taking her out on Friday, and depending on how it goes, we’ll either pursue this… potential relationship, or we’ll go back to being strictly friends. Because neither of us want to lose each other, you know?”

“Dude, I told you it would work out!” Veronica exclaimed.

Toni rolled her eyes. “It hasn’t officially worked out yet, Ronnie.”

“Hey, positivity Toni!” Veronica insisted. “What are you up to?”

“Homework. How was your day yesterday? You spent it with Betty, right?”

“Yeah, she’s still pretty shaken up over everything that happened with her mom last weekend. She called her sister today and she’s going to come visit from Boston pretty soon. They haven’t seen each other in a while, and she wants to tell her in person.”

Toni hummed thoughtfully. “Sometimes I forget about the whole… coming out process,” she admitted. “I guess because I never had to do that with anyone, except like, Sweet Pea. He was the only one I counted as family at that time.”

“You definitely had a unique growing up experience, Tiny,” Veronica said softly. “But I kind of get it. Telling my mom was surprisingly easy, although sometimes I don’t think she fully supports it. But I don’t think I’ll ever tell my dad. At least… not for the foreseeable future, you know? He’d be so… disappointed.”

“Yeah.”

“Speaking of, I’ve talked a lot to Betty about my parents,” Veronica admitted. “Aside from you, I’ve never been able to get into the nitty gritty about them with anyone, and it feels so good.”

Toni smiled, setting down her pen and giving up trying to do homework and talk to her friend at the same time. She left her desk and flopped onto her bed. “That’s great, Veronica, I’m so happy for you.”

“And while I was talking to her about them, I had made a mental note to tell  _ you _ something.”

“What’s that?”

“When you and Cheryl **_―_ ** sorry,  _ if _ you guys **_―_ ** end up going all in… don’t forget to open up to her. I know that girl had her demons, but you haven’t lived a cake walk either, and she has to know that.”

“I’m sure she already does.”

“How? When’s the last time you mentioned your parents  _ ever _ ?”

Toni pursed her lips. “I get it, V. It’s not like I would just forget to talk about that stuff.”

“It’s just… it’s been a while since you’ve been in a relationship, Toni. And you know that I love you. I want you to get everything you deserve out of being with someone, and you deserve someone you can lean on, not  _ just _ someone who leans on you. And I love Cheryl too, you know she’s one of my best friends, but I haven’t fully witnessed her being someone’s shoulder to cry on. And I’m sure she’s capable of it, especially with you, but I want you to not  _ forget _ that.”

“Okay, Ronnie. Thanks.”

“Yeah. Sorry. I don’t want to overstep, T, but… yeah.”

“It’s okay, really,” Toni promised. “I know you’re just looking out for me. And I love you too, Ronnie. You’re a really amazing friend.”

“Hey, hey,” Veronica said, “ _ I’m _ the lucky one.”

“Oh my god, V, we aren’t doing that,” Toni said with a bright laugh. “I’ve gotta get back to my homework. I’ll see you later this week.”

“Let’s find time to get lunch a couple times this week, yeah? I feel bad that we’ve been hanging out less because of me and Betty getting together.”

“Lunch sounds good,” Toni agreed. “See you, V.”

* * *

Sunday night, Toni and Sweet Pea ordered a pizza to share, and she caught her best friend up on the situation with Cheryl. He, like Veronica, was very happy that Toni was getting her shot with the redhead. He had some of the qualms that Toni had initially, though, suggesting that she tread carefully in case Cheryl was at all still on the fence. And Toni kind of agreed with them, though the more she thought about it, the more she felt like maybe she should trust Cheryl more. If she said her feelings were completely real, and had been developing over time, then Toni should believe that.

That said, she couldn’t be blamed for wanting to protect her heart.

Starting Monday morning, though, Toni was forcing herself into a good mindset – a positive one, like Veronica had suggested.

It helped that when she woke up that morning, she had a few texts from a certain redhead.

**Cheryl Bombshell – Good morning! I thought I should tell you that I finally did that deep thinking that I promised I would do, and I have changed your name in my phone, finally.**

**Cheryl Bombshell – Want to try and guess what it is?**

Thinking for a moment, Toni stared at the bright screen in the dark room. She hadn’t even rolled out of bed yet, and a smile was stuck on her face. Sure, she and Cheryl had been texting way more often than in the past during the last couple of weeks, but waking up to good morning texts from Cheryl felt… domestic, routine-like. And Toni liked that feeling.

She felt a lightbulb go off in her head suddenly.

**Toni Topaz – TT?**

**Cheryl Bombshell – How did you guess???**

**TT – It’s what you kept calling me on Saturday, when you were drunk.**

**Cheryl Bombshell – This is what I get for getting wasted.**

**Cheryl Bombshell – So is it an acceptable nickname?**

**TT – I’ll allow it, but only from you. If you get Sweets or Ronnie to ever call me that, I’ll have to ban it. It’s very close to being** **_too_ ** **cutesy.**

**Cheryl Bombshell – Aw, but you are cute.**

Toni felt heat rising to her cheeks. It was so different getting to text Cheryl and not having to hide anything, but Cheryl not hiding things either was going to give the pink haired girl a heart attack. Biting her lower lip, Toni kept typing on her phone.

**TT – Uh, excuse me, I’m a badass.**

**Cheryl Bombshell – A cute badass?**

**TT – You’ve never seen me punch someone in the face, Bombshell, maybe then you wouldn’t be calling me cute. >_>**

**Cheryl Bombshell – Oh yeah? How often do you punch people in the face?**

**TT – Twice yearly, about. At least, that’s how many times I’ve punched someone this year.**

**Cheryl Bombshell – I think I know one of those times. What was the first one?**

**TT – During the summer, it was self-defense. Was walking home from work and someone tried to jump me – he got nothing but a broken nose and a black eye for his efforts. Also I kneed him in the nuts.**

**Cheryl Bombshell – Wow, definitely a badass.**

**Cheryl Bombshell – A very cute one, too. ;)**

**TT – Ohmygod**

**TT – I refuse to argue this point with you any further, Blossom. I’ve gotta drag myself out of bed and get ready for class.**

**Cheryl Bombshell – Talk later? x**

**TT – Definitely.**

* * *

Because of Toni’s busy schedule, and Cheryl’s probably equally, if nor more, busy schedule, they didn’t see each other at all that week aside from briefly on Wednesday. Toni and Veronica had missed the lunch they’d planned on having together, so Toni had decided to go over to the dorms to say hey before she headed back to her apartment. But as she approached Veronica’s door, she began hearing loud moans from inside, and she stopped in her tracks.

“Oh my  _ god _ ,  _ fuck _ , Betty!”

“Fucking shit,” Toni muttered under her breath, already traumatized as she hurried back down the hallway. Suddenly, one of the doors ahead of her opened, and Cheryl stepped out, looking very surprised as she noticed Toni.

“Toni,” she said brightly, before her eyebrows knit slightly. “What’s wrong? You look like you just saw a ghost.”

“Nope, I  _ wish _ ,” Toni said with a groan. “I came over to see Ronnie, because we haven’t been able to get lunch like we planned this week, but she is uh, very otherwise occupied by Betty.”

Cheryl quirked up one of those beautifully sculpted red eyebrows. “I’ve heard them a couple of times, walking through the hallway,” she admitted, “I didn’t have the heart to tell her how loud she is.”

“I never wanted to know how loud she is,” Toni said with a groan, “it’s like hearing my sister have sex, Cher. I’m so uncomfortable.” There was a thump from back down the hall and Toni groaned again. “I seriously hope that wasn’t from her room.”

“My theory is that dear Betty Cooper is secretly wild in the sheets, you wouldn’t expect it with how sweet she always is, but I could picture it.”

Toni leaned against the hallway wall, looking up slightly into Cheryl’s dark eyes. “You picture Betty and Veronica having sex pretty often?” Cheryl scoffed instantly, which brought a smile to Toni’s lips. “Good, just checking.”

“Oh,” Cheryl said suddenly, and Toni sensed the topic change, “you never answered me when I texted earlier about where we’re going on Friday.”

“That’s because it’s a surprise, Bombshell,” Toni deadpanned, lifting her eyebrows.

Cheryl furrowed her eyebrows. “How am I supposed to know what to wear if I don’t know where we’re going?”

“If I told you we were going to a hole in the wall, you would still show up in an outfit fit for some super extravagant ball or something,” Toni pointed out, crossing her arms over her chest. Cheryl let out a little huff, and Toni honestly thought it was adorable. “Am I wrong?”

“You’ve never seen me in a ball gown, but I see your point… fine. Although I still would rather know.”

“Wear layers, okay?”

A small smile appeared on Cheryl’s face, she was clearly pleased to have gotten anything out of Toni. “Okay.”

“Well, I guess I’m going to head home,” Toni said, noticing the disappointment appearing on Cheryl’s expression. She wondered briefly if she’d just missed expressions like that before their admissions on Sunday, or if Cheryl was simply letting her in more now. “I wasn’t planning on staying at V’s long anyway, and I have some stuff to get done tomorrow. Plus, I think I interrupted you going somewhere.”

“Not really,” Cheryl admitted. “My weekday life is depressingly mundane. I was going to grab pizza from the common room on the floor **_―_ ** someone ordered a bunch, and it’s free, so I figured why not? Would you want to grab a slice with me before you leave?”

Toni couldn’t say no to that face, so she followed Cheryl through the dorm hallways to the common room, which she’d probably only seen a few times before. Sure enough, a bunch of boxes of pizza were scattered over the large coffee table in the middle of the couches and chairs in the room. A few people were lounging around, but no one paid much attention as Cheryl went up to the pizza box, grabbing a paper plate and two slices of cheese.

Toni grabbed a slice of pepperoni with just a napkin, taking a bite of the cheesy goodness immediately to keep it from falling apart. “You  _ could _ just get a plate.”

“If I get a plate, it’s more likely that I’ll sit down here and hang out, and as much as I would love to do that, I really do have things to do tonight,” Toni told the redhead after swallowing her bite of pizza. She took another one as Cheryl sighed.

“Alright, fair enough I guess.” She hadn’t touched her pizza yet. “Well, get home safe, okay?” Toni swallowed her second bite, smiling sweetly at Cheryl.

“I will.”

Suddenly, Cheryl leaned forward, pressing her lips very lightly to Toni’s cheek. It was a fluttery little kiss, and it left Toni’s skin tingling. Toni bit her bottom lip as her eyes locked with Cheryl’s. “I’ll text you later, Bombshell.”

“I look forward to it.”

And with that, Toni mustered all the willpower she could and left the room, starting in the direction of the exit from the dorms. She so badly wanted to be able to spend the evening with Cheryl, but she had homework.

Not to mention, she really did want to take this date seriously, and she wanted it to feel like a first date. So maybe that meant keeping any of her and Cheryl’s interactions from feeling in any way like they could be on a first date.

It was a silly thing to worry about, Toni knew, especially considering how many times they’d hung out before, but she wanted this to go well. She was afraid of messing up, because the more she texted Cheryl, or talked about her with Sweet Pea or Veronica, the more she realized that going back to being friends after opening up about her feelings toward Cheryl would be hell. But she had to honor her ultimatum of course, and she would rather go back to being friends than to fall out completely, of course.

But right now, the best option was definitely to just have a great first date. So she would make it great if it was the last thing she did.

* * *

**Bombshell – Good morning, TT! It’s finally Friday!**

Cheryl had been sending good morning texts every day since the first one on Monday, and Toni was basically living for it. On Thursday morning, it had come a little later in the morning, and she’d actually grown slightly concerned that Cheryl had overslept, and then just worried that she’d become tired of sending them every day.

But no, she’d sent it by the time Toni had been headed to campus, leaving a smile on the pink haired girl’s face.

**TT – Good morning! And yes, finally. I’m sure you’re definitely not excited about tonight.**

**Bombshell – Oh yes, not at all. It’s sure to be a very uneventful evening.**

**Bombshell – What time will said evening start?**

**TT – My last class today got canceled so I’m gonna go back to my place and change, my plan was to be back on campus by five, we need to grab a cab by five-thirty at the latest.**

**Bombshell – Okay, then I will make sure to be ready by then!**

**TT – Great, can’t wait, Bombshell.**

**Bombshell – My first class is starting, talk to you later x**

* * *

**V-Ronnie – Are you more nervous or excited?**

**Tiny Toni – I’ve been mostly excited this week, but now that it’s like, almost actually happening, I’m feeling the nerves.**

**V-Ronnie – You got this, Toni. You’ve had a year of buildup, if anyone can pull off the perfect date to officially snatch up Cheryl Blossom, it’s you.**

**Tiny Toni – Lol, thank you for the reassurance, V.**

**V-Ronnie – Of course!**

**V-Ronnie – If it helps, I think Cheryl is a little nervous too.**

**Tiny Toni – Have you talked to her today?**

**V-Ronnie – Uh yeah, I may or may not be in her dorm with her right now.**

Toni furrowed her eyebrows a little. She was currently on the subway on the way back to NYU, having just changed into her date attire **_―_ ** heeled boots, black, ripped jeans, a black mesh top over a sleek black bra, and her leather jacket. Realizing how dark the whole outfit was, she threw in a red flannel tied around her waist. Since she knew that the date didn’t require formal attire, she had decided to stick with her usual aesthetic, just like she knew that Cheryl would be sticking with her usual aesthetic as well.

**V-Ronnie – Don’t worry, I’m not relaying any of these messages to her or anything.**

**Tiny Toni – Omg Ronnie.**

**V-Ronnie – What? My two best friends are going on a date, and you didn’t ask me for outfit assistance. Cheryl did, and she’s right down the hall, am I supposed to be like “Sorry, I’m busy” when she can see that I’m clearly doing nothing at all?**

**Tiny Toni – Ok, ok, you make some fair points.**

**Tiny Toni – She hasn’t gotten you to squeal about what we’re doing, right? I’m very adamant about keeping it as a surprise.**

**V-Ronnie – Yeah it was easy, I told her that I don’t know, and she stopped pestering me about it.**

**V-Ronnie – She’s all ready by the way, so you better be close. You said you’d be here five, you’ve got two minutes to stick true to that.**

**Tiny Toni – Next stop, NYU.**

Sure enough, the subway screeched to a stop, and she hurried out of it. As soon as she was out of the underground, it was a straight shot of walking to get to the dorms. It wasn’t a two minute walk, though, so she would obviously be late. Not that it was the end of the world **_―_ ** she’d told Cheryl they needed to leave by five-thirty, and if the redhead was ready, then there would be nothing keeping them late. Unless Veronica did something to hold them up, but judging by how excited she seemed at the very prospect of this date, Toni doubted that that could happen.

* * *

She got to Cheryl’s door not much later, taking in a deep breath before knocking. She was unreasonably nervous. Yes, it was their first date, but Toni and Cheryl had hung out countless times before this. Toni should have a better grip on herself.

When the door swung open, Toni had the same sort of reaction she did almost every time she saw Cheryl dressed for an outing **_―_ ** she was awestruck and the breath was stolen from her throat. She was wearing dark tights, a bright red, high waisted skirt, and a black blouse. Her cherry brooch was pinned on her right side, and a cardigan was draped over her top. Her hair was falling in delicate curls, and her signature red lipstick was coated over her lips.

“Perfect timing!” Cheryl said brightly, not missing a beat despite the fact that Toni’s second or two of absorbing the redhead’s outfit had felt like so much longer. “I just kicked Veronica out of my dorm after she started squealing about how you were almost here and then tried to give me pre-date advice.”

Toni lifted an eyebrow in amusement. “Yeah, I’ve been on the end of some of those advice sessions. They always lean toward being pretty awkward.”

Cheryl chuckled. “Yeah, it seemed like that was the direction it was taking.” The redhead’s dark eyes suddenly did a sweep of the smaller girl, and Toni felt heat rising to her cheeks as she watched Cheryl check her out.

“You ready to go, Bombshell?” Toni asked after a moment, realizing that Cheryl wasn’t planning on saying anything.

“Definitely.” Toni took a step back as Cheryl stepped out of her dorm, closing the door behind her. “You’re not going to tell me where we’re going, are you?”

“No, I am not,” Toni confirmed with a smirk, casting a sidelong glance at the beautiful woman walking next to her.

“I was impressed to hear that you hadn’t told Veronica either,” Cheryl commented, and Toni couldn’t even control her expression, biting down on her lip as she was sure it gave away the deception. “Wait, you did? She lied? Toni!”

“I didn’t tell her to lie,” Toni exclaimed, “but she was sworn to secrecy. It’s in our unspoken, and unwritten, best friend pact.”

Cheryl huffed. “I’m going to have words with her later.”

“Come on, you really hate surprises that much?” Toni asked. They walked out of the dorm building and started for the nearest main street to catch a cab. The pink haired girl looked at her companion, whose cheeks were a little red as she sighed.

“Okay no, I like surprises.  _ Sometimes _ . But that doesn’t mean that I don’t want to know them ahead of time.”

“So you’d like for people to plan surprises for you, and then spoil them?” Toni wondered curiously.

Cheryl sniffed. “It’s the thought that counts, TT.” That was the first time Toni had heard Cheryl’s nickname for her said out loud while she was sober, and for some reason, it made her heart do a little flip in her chest.

“Maybe,” Toni agreed, “but I think the full thing carried out counts too.”

“I guess so.”

Toni nudged the redhead a little, drawing her gaze. “I promise you’ll have a good time, okay?” A small smile appeared on the redhead’s face.

“Don’t worry, I wasn’t doubting that at all.”

Toni hailed a cab, and they clambered into it. Toni gave the guy a street address, and then looked pointedly at Cheryl. “Don’t you go onto your phone and look that up, Bombshell.”

“I’ve given up, there’s no point in trying to figure it out now. We’ll be there soon anyway.”

The cab took off, and Toni turned her full attention to her  _ date _ . “So, I heard you called upon Veronica for outfit assistance.”

Cheryl scoffed, redness appearing across her cheeks. “I didn’t need  _ assistance _ , if that’s what she said. I just wanted a second opinion, because I had two options, and I couldn’t decide.”

“Were you nervous, Cher?” Toni asked somewhat teasingly.

“Aren’t  _ you _ ?” Cheryl asked back challengingly, lifting an eyebrow. “You were the one who had more doubts about doing this.”

Toni knew that Cheryl was right, but she’d been psyching herself up to this date all week, so she was doing her best to be fully confident. “You make a fair point,” she told Cheryl, “but anyway. You look beautiful, is what I leading up to.”

Cheryl smiled sweetly. “I know,” she said, oozing that typical Cheryl Bombshell confidence, followed by, “thank you. You look pretty stunning yourself, TT.” Toni felt her stomach twisting up as her heart pattered faster than normal. “You know, when you were helping Veronica get ready for her date with Betty, you said something about your style not comparing with hers or mine. And I’ve been meaning to tell you that I completely disagree.  _ J’adore _ your flannel, mesh aesthetic, and this jacket does wonders too.” She reached out a delicate hand, touching the leather lightly and dragging her fingers down it. Toni shivered, even though she couldn’t really feel the touch on her actual arm.

“Well, thank you,” Toni said softly. “And was that French I heard?”

“It was,” Cheryl confirmed, her hand returning to her lap, “didn’t you know I spoke French, TT?”

“No, I can’t say that I did,” Toni admitted, feeling like that was a pretty big miss – she’d known Cheryl for over a year now. “I guess I’m not really surprised, though. Beautiful girl speaking a beautiful language? Makes perfect sense.”

Cheryl did blush now, unlike the first time that Toni had called her beautiful, and it made the pink haired girl’s chest swell a little with pride. “I didn’t realize you were such a smooth talker, Topaz.”

Toni chuckled. “That’s because I have largely been avoiding sounding like I was talking smoothly around you, Red. I’m not sure you even noticed, but the only time I’ve ever really let myself flirt with you after we became good friends was when you’re drunk.”

“How would I have been able to notice if I’m drunk, especially considering that you being flirty is sometimes hardly different than how you talk to friends?”

“You’re second to Veronica in saying that to me,” Toni admitted, “do I really sound like I’m flirting with everyone?”

“Well…” Cheryl drifted off. “I guess not really, know that I’ve heard your  _ actual _ smooth talking. But to someone whose never heard you actually try and flirt with them, I would say it’s definitely confusing.”

“Noted,” Toni said with amusement. “So, you speak French and you have family in France, right? That’s why you visited there this summer?” Cheryl nodded. “Did you go a lot when you were younger?”

“When I was a kid, yeah,” Cheryl answered. “My mother’s family is from France **_―_ ** her mother was an immigrant. I used to love visiting **_―_ ** my mom’s cousin has this beautiful, Gothic home in the countryside a little ways out of Paris, and it was surrounded by hedges and flower bushes.” Toni watched as Cheryl’s expression relaxed as she must’ve pictured the place, her eyes glazing over a little. “Jason and I used to run wild through it and its grounds, and my mother would always yell at us afterward, but we didn’t care.” This was only the second time that Toni had ever heard Cheryl talk about her brother, and this time felt different. “I guess when we were about eleven, my mother’s family started having some qualms with my father **_―_ ** which I completely understand. He wasn’t a great person, not that my mother really is. But that’s when we stopped visiting.”

“But you got to visit again this past summer?”

“Yes… my mom’s cousin didn’t  _ say _ it was because of my father passing, but it was. They invited as much of the family as they could, and it was kind of family reunion, and kind of to pay respects to all of the family members who have passed away in the years since we’d all seen each other. I don’t know, it was definitely nice to see some of them. But others… are a lot like my mother.” Cheryl shrugged her shoulders. “It was nice to go back to France, though, and to visit the house and Paris and see everything. But… it was hard without Jason.”

“Yeah, I’m sure,” Toni agreed softly.

Cheryl smiled sadly at the pink haired girl. “Have you ever been out of the country?”

“Oh, no. The closest I got was when Sweet Pea and I took a spontaneous road trip up to the Canadian border in our junior year of high school. We kind of stole his dad’s truck, and when we got to the border, we remembered that,  _ obviously _ , to leave the country you need passports. And neither of us had one. I still don’t have one, actually,” Toni admitted. “Leaving the country for like a vacation hasn’t really ever been an option for me.”

Cheryl didn’t ask for an explanation as to why, because it wasn’t necessary. Toni might not have talked about her childhood very much, but Cheryl was an incredibly smart woman, so there was no way that she hadn’t inferred a lot of it over the past year. “Did Sweet Pea’s dad get pissed about you taking the truck?”

“Yes, majorly,” Toni said with a laugh, “and he grounded Sweet Pea for a couple of weeks, and forbade me from crashing on their couch for the same amount of time. At the time, it was like, a really big problem, but it’s kind of funny thinking back. I stayed with Veronica for part of that time, and that was my first ever taste at the life of luxury.” She said the last part with humor in her voice, but she was being entirely serious.

“Someday I’ll take you to Paris, TT,” Cheryl stated, in such a casual tone that Toni wouldn’t have been surprised if what she’d actually said was something like “It’s cold outside.” But no, she’d definitely said what Toni had heard, and Toni’s heart was doing some more flips.  _ God _ , did Cheryl know what kind of effect she had on her?

“That’s a big promise to make,” Toni teased, and Cheryl just gave her a warm smile. Surely still blushing, Toni turned to look out the window. Despite the typical traffic of New York City, they were making decent time it seemed. They were almost to their destination.

It wasn’t some big, fancy, elaborate date that Toni had planned. She’d kept it as a surprise because it was more fun that way, but she hoped that Cheryl wasn’t expecting some giant, extravagant surprise.

A calm silence settled between them for the rest of the drive, and soon, they were pulling to a stop, Cheryl looking out the window interestedly. Toni thanked the cabbie, handing him enough cash for the ride, and then opened the door. She climbed out and held the door for the redhead, who was peering down the sidewalk in both directions, trying to figure out where it was they were going.

As the cab departed, Toni gently reached out and grabbed Cheryl’s hand, slightly surprising the woman. “That’s where we’re going,” she said, nodding across the street at the tiny, old movie theater. “We’re seeing a movie **_―_ ** I hope that’s okay. We’re gonna get food after.”

“Toni, that’s perfect,” Cheryl promised. “What are we seeing?”

“Well, this is an old little theater,” Toni started, leading the redhead toward the cross walk and waiting for it to light up green, “and they have only three movies showing. They all start in the next like, half hour, so I figured you can just pick whatever you want, because I’m good to see whatever. I’m not picky with movies.”

Cheryl grinned. “Okay.”

“I don’t think they have any brand new movies, but they show movies from like, decades ago to a year ago. So we’ll just have to see what the options are tonight.”

The crosswalk light turned green, and Cheryl was quickly propelling them forward, causing Toni to laugh. “I take it you like movie theaters?”

“I love old movie theaters,” Cheryl admitted. “New movie theaters feel too… monotonous. There’s nothing exciting about any of them. It’s the old movie theaters that have stories etched in their walls, signs, everything. And in all honesty, it’s been a while since I’ve seen a movie in a theater.”

They started for the door to the theater, and Toni said, “Sweets and I found this place this summer. We both had a day off of work and we went scouring the city for the cheapest movie theater we could find. And we found this one, but not only is it cheap, it’s got such a great vibe. And their popcorn is like, the best movie theater popcorn I’ve had like, ever.”

“And you don’t even like popcorn that much.”

“ _ Exactly _ .”

They walked into the adorable little theater and Cheryl made a beeline for the small box office next to the only slightly bigger concession stand. The whole lobby was incredibly small, but it felt so authentic – an old New York movie theater – and Toni loved it. She was happy to hear that Cheryl loved it as well.

They looked at their movie options for the night: The Breakfast Club, The Notebook, and Star Wars: A New Hope.

Toni felt herself perk up at the first one **_―_ ** The Breakfast Club was one of her all time favorite movies. Cheryl seemed to notice her change in demeanor, and she looked curiously at the pink haired girl. “Which one?”

“What? I said you can pick.”

“I know, but you got excited about something.”

Toni felt Cheryl squeeze her hand, and it brought a small smile to her face. “The Breakfast Club. I love it.”

“I haven’t seen it in years,” Cheryl admitted. “I think the only time I ever watched it was in one of my high school classes **_―_ ** one of the teachers put it on at the end of the year when we ran out of material to cover.” Toni said nothing as Cheryl studied their three options. “Let’s watch it.”

“You sure?”

“I’m positive, Toni,” Cheryl insisted, and the smaller girl grinned, stepping up to the lady working the box office.

“Two tickets for The Breakfast Club.”

“That’ll be ten-eighty,” the woman replied, and Toni, after fumbling with her pockets for a moment, slid a ten and a one through the hole in the glass. Her change as well as the two tickets were passed back. “You guys have a good night.”

“You too!” Cheryl replied brightly, grabbing Toni’s hand as soon as she’d pocketed the change. Toni felt her heart swell, and she wondered if she would react so strongly every time Cheryl did something like that. Complimenting her, touching her, opening up to her… Toni was being swept up in a tornado of  _ Cheryl Blossom _ , and she loved it.

“What size popcorn do you think you’ll eat?” Toni wondered, stroking her thumb over the back of Cheryl’s pale hand.

“Just a small.”

“You sure?”

“Yep, even if you’re stealing some of it,” Cheryl promised, nudging her playfully.

“Alright,” Toni said with a chuckle, “and what drink does Cheryl Bombshell enjoy with her popcorn at movie theaters?”

Cheryl smirked. “I bet you could guess it.”

Toni’s face twisted into one of careful deliberation, but after only a moment, she realized, her gaze landing on the little brooch adorning her date’s outfit. “Cherry coke?”

“Bingo.”

They went up to the concession stand and Toni smiled at the cashier, “Hey, can we get one small popcorn, a bottle of cherry coke, a bottle of regular coke, a pack of M&Ms, and…” She looked at Cheryl. “You want anything else?”

“Are you sharing your M&Ms?”

“Of course.”

“Then nope, I’m good.”

“That’s gonna be it,” Toni said to the cashier, who nodded, grabbing all of the things they’d requested before ringing them up. The total price for the snacks and drinks was just over ten dollars, so much better than a mainstream movie place. She handed another ten and some change from her previous transaction, getting just a few pennies back. She had just enough cash for their food later **_―_ ** and she’d overestimated just in case for that **_―_ ** and for a cab back, and she had her card in case of emergencies, but she’d planned her cash transactions almost perfectly.

They grabbed their snacks and started for the little podium blocking the entrance toward the theaters. The usher working it gave them a smile as they approached, and Toni handed over their tickets, which he tore quickly. “Second theater, on the right. Enjoy your movie.”

“Thank you,” Toni said politely, and then she and Cheryl hurried into the theater. Despite how empty the lobby was, they were not the only people in the theater. About ten other people were scattered throughout it, mostly in pairs. Toni let Cheryl pick where they sat, and once they were seated, the popcorn resting in Cheryl’s lab and the M&Ms in Toni’s, the pink haired girl popped open her coke bottle satisfyingly, and took a long sip from it before placing it in her cup holder.

“It’s a little unintuitive to be eating all these snacks before we have a real dinner,” Cheryl teased, taking a piece of popcorn and tossing it into her mouth. “Oh my god. You weren’t kidding. This popcorn is heavenly.”

Toni smiled, stealing a piece from the redhead. “Yeah, told you. Also, while you are technically correct about that, I feel like what always happens is that you feel a little full after eating the popcorn and candy, but by the time you finish the movie, it’s like, you’ve already finished the snacks and you’re ready for real food.”

Cheryl chuckled. “I guess so. Where are we eating?”

“There’s a taco place down the street,” Toni said, “it’s a grab n’ go kind of place. I figured tacos were a safe bet.”

“I do love a good taco,” Cheryl commented, and Toni was very surprised by the tone her voice took on, making a very clear innuendo.

“Whoa there, Bombshell,” Toni teased, “this is just our  _ first _ date, remember?”

Cheryl chuckled, meeting Toni’s eyes. “It doesn’t feel like it.”

“I guess that’s what happens when you go on a date with someone you’ve been friends with for over a year,” Toni said softly, not breaking their shared gaze.

The movie theater projector suddenly flickered on, beginning some ads, and Cheryl turned to look a the screen in surprise. Toni kept her gaze focused on the redhead, watching how the lights from the screen illuminated parts of Cheryl’s perfectly defined face. When Cheryl turned back to Toni, having recovered from her surprise, a shy smile appeared on her face. “What are you looking at, Topaz?”

“What does it look like I’m looking at?” Toni asked back, feigning snark and enjoying the small chuckle that Cheryl released.

“What are you thinking?”

Toni let out a little sigh. She wasn’t really thinking about anything specific, just…  _ Cheryl _ . “I guess I’m still just kind of shocked that we’re doing this. Feels like I could wake up from a dream at any moment.”

Cheryl was suddenly turning her body to more fully face Toni. “It’s real, TT, I promise. And I want you to know, in case you’ve wondered at all since our conversation on Sunday, I haven’t second guessed this at all. I know you’re scared that I will, and I understand why after what you admitted to me. But I promise, the more time I spend with you, Toni, the more I want this.”

Toni bit down on her lower lip. “Me too,” is all she managed to get out. Their eyes searched each other’s for a few long moments, until finally, Toni gave in to temptation and leaned forward, connecting their lips in a soft kiss that Cheryl was instantly returning. It was slow, exploratory, gentle. Cheryl’s lips were coated in that red lipstick, but with how softly Cheryl’s plump lips grazed against hers, Toni wasn’t worried about it doing much damage to her own lip gloss coated lips.

The kiss wasn’t long lasting, because a flash from the screen, as well as a loud noise from whatever ad was playing, broke them apart. Cheryl immediately bit down on her lower lip as they pulled back slightly, further into their own seats. “Aren’t kisses supposed to be saved for the end of the first date, TT?”

“Are you complaining, Bombshell?”

Cheryl smiled. “Not at all.” She grabbed her cherry cola from her cup holder, popping it open and taking a sip. As she lowered it back, she looked down to Toni’s lap. “Are you going to open those M&Ms or what?”

* * *

The Breakfast Club may have been one of Toni’s top movies, but she had such a hard time focusing on it. She spent the first part of the movie sneaking popcorn from the bag and snacking on her M&Ms, occasionally sipping her coke. But less than halfway in, they were done with their snacks, and they dumped the empty M&M box into the popcorn bag and set it on the floor in between them. And after that, Cheryl had made a point to grab Toni’s hand, and from that point on, Toni couldn’t focus on anything else.

She’d begun to stroke the back of Cheryl’s hand, and somehow had gotten so focused on doing so that she zoned out for a good few minutes of the movie. Then she started sneaking glances at the redhead, who seemed utterly absorbed into the movie. Toni only managed to tune mostly back into the film toward the end, but she still stole a few peeks at Cheryl, noticing how captured she was by the whole final scene.

As soon as the credits started rolling, Cheryl was saying, “Wow. I definitely didn’t fully appreciate this movie the first time I saw it. I can see why it’s one of your favorites.”

“Mmhmm,” Toni agreed.

Cheryl looked at the pink haired girl suspiciously. “You’re very quiet.”

“Sorry. You’re distracting,” Toni admitted.

“So what, you didn’t even watch the movie?”

Toni blushed, shrugging. “I’ve seen it many times. And I  _ did _ watch it.”

“You just spent more time watching me?” Cheryl asked, smirking and lifting an eyebrow.

“Not  _ watching _ you, I’m not a  _ stalker _ ,” Toni huffed out in defiance.

“Good to hear, Cha-Cha,” Cheryl teased with a shake of her head. She grabbed her cherry coke and drank the last of it before sitting up straight in her seat. The lights in the theater had brightened slightly, and the other people in the theater were filing out, talking quietly in their pairs. “Come on, you’re right, I am hungry for real food now.”

“ _ Told you _ ,” Toni teased, grabbing their trash and then standing up, pulling Cheryl up with her.

They left the theater, tossing their trash in one of the trashcans, and left the theater, stepping out into the cold New York City nighttime air. It had definitely been chilly earlier, but now it was cold, and Toni saw Cheryl shiver. “Do you want my jacket?”

“No, Toni, if I take your jacket, you’ll be cold,” Cheryl insisted with a shake of her head. “It’s not that bad, I wore a cardigan for a reason **_―_ ** you told me to wear layers.”

“Yeah, and Cher, that is the thinnest layer ever,” Toni bit back gently. “At least take this, it’s not actually providing me any warmth.” She was untying her flannel from her waist, and handed it to Cheryl before she could refuse.

The redhead took the red flannel and pulled it over her cardigan. It almost matched her whole aesthetic, since it was red and black, but the pattern and material did kind of clash with the classiness of the tight skirt. But Cheryl really looked like an angel in anything she wore. “Thank you,” Cheryl murmured, grabbing for Toni’s hand again.

Toni started leading them down the sidewalk toward the taco place. “You’re very welcome,” she replied. “Wouldn’t want you freezing to death on our first date.”

Cheryl chuckled. “So thoughtful.”

“I know, thank you, I try.”

“You know, Toni, badass or not, you really are  _ so cute _ .”

Toni felt heat rising to her cheeks, but she forced out a groan. “This again?”

“I’m just saying.”

“’Just saying,’ okay.”

Cheryl laughed brightly, tightening her hold on Toni’s hand and pulling the smaller woman closer to her. “Yeah.”

“Alright, Bombshell.”

They reached the tiny little takeout taco shop and hurried inside, where it was significantly warmer. They looked at the menu for a few minutes, and then each ordered two of their tacos of choice, as well as a side of chips and queso for both of them. Toni paid, and they waited for only a couple of minutes for the employees to make their food. Since there was nowhere to sit inside the tiny little shop, they left, going back into the cold air and locating some steps in front of a closed store to sit on to eat.

They talked about little things as they ate **_―_ ** the movie, their favorite kinds of tacos, their favorite seasons, and a bunch of other things that didn’t seem to correlate completely. Whatever popped into their heads. It was easy, easier than ever, really.

Despite both of them wearing layers now, by the time they finished eating, they were both pretty cold. Cheryl rubbed her hands together to warm them as Toni worked on getting a cab. Once one of the yellow cars pulled up, they squeezed into the back with a laugh, and Toni realized that she didn’t know where they were going. “Ah,” she said suddenly, “I can go with you back to the dorms and then head back to mine.”

Cheryl opened her mouth slowly, realizing the impasse they were at now too. “Okay,” she agreed after a moment, and Toni turned to the driver apologetically, giving him their destination.

It felt weird that they would be parting ways after their evening together, especially after the past couple of weekends where Cheryl had stayed over for one reason or another. But of course, every time they’d done that, Toni had been on the floor. And she wasn’t sure that they should rush into staying over at each other’s places now. Sure, for her this had been building for a long time, but it hadn’t been as long for Cheryl. And she didn’t want to rush her, or this, or do anything that might hurt what they had. Because it was real **_―_ ** it was  _ so _ real, Toni could feel it. And knowing that Cheryl  _ did _ feel it  _ too _ … she wouldn’t risk fucking it up, there was no way in hell.

When they got back to the dorms, they both got out of the cab and Toni paid him quickly. She didn’t have enough to pay for her own cab back to the apartment, but it wasn’t too late, so she would have no issues taking the subway. But she was afraid that Cheryl would tut at her and offer to pay for a cab if she mentioned anything about it, so Toni just offered to walk Cheryl back to her dorm.

Their hands were intertwined as they made the short walk to and into the building.

“Thank you, Toni, tonight was incredible,” Cheryl said softly. “I’m really glad you agreed to give this a shot… I really… can’t remember the last time someone made me feel as happy as you do, Toni. And you’ve always been able to do that, ever since I met you, I just… don’t think I fully realized it until recently. And I’m so sorry for that.”

“It’s okay, you don’t have to apologize,” Toni insisted with a shake of her head. “And thank you for being patient with me last week. I’m glad we did this. And… I would really love to see where this goes with us.”

Cheryl smiled a beautiful, ecstatic smile at the pink haired girl. “You’re not terrified of losing our friendship anymore?”

“Don’t make me second guess what I said, Red,” Toni teased, pulling them to a stop as they finally reached Cheryl’s dorm room. “You make me feel so much, Cheryl, and I could ignore that while I thought there was no chance of it going anywhere. But now… I can’t, and I don’t think we could even go back to that same friendship we had even if we wanted to now.”

Cheryl smiled again, grabbing Toni’s free hand with her own, facing her. She looked between Toni’s eyes, seeming like she was going to say something, but instead, she leaned down and pressed her lips firmly to Toni’s in another soft, warm kiss that Toni returned easily.

This was a good decision, she was sure.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eeeee!! I hope you enjoyed the chapter! I have so much fun stuff coming up in this story and I'm so excited for you all to continue this ride with me! We're technically almost halfway through now, whoa. Also to clarify because I believe at least one person said something about this, yes I have this story completely finished, but I'm still following my update schedule. If I don't, then I'll be completely MIA on Ao3 for probably at least a month, because I don't have anything else ready to post, so while I work on my next story, I'm posting this. If that makes sense? Plus, I do early updates and sneak peeks (follow me @BrittzandTana to see how to get them) so I have to do those before each update as well. Anyway! Thank you all so much for reading, I've been loving reading your comments! I hope you all have an incredible weekend!! x


	8. La Maison de Toni et Sweet Pea

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Veronica demands that Toni dish on her the details of her date, and we get some more Choni fluff.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Thursday beautifuls! This chapter is mostly fluff, I'm such a fucking slut for fluff but I promise that's not the whole rest of the story XD  
> Speaking of the rest of the story, my girlfriend finished binging it the past few days (she just caught up on Riverdale so she was waiting until then to read it) and she liked it so hopefully that means that you all will also enjoy all the way to the end XD  
> Anyway, without further ado, please enjoy!!xx

**** Toni woke up to her door flying open all of the sudden, and her eyes opened immediately in alarm, prepared to punch whoever it was that had invaded her home, but her gaze landed on Veronica, who was slipping off her shoes. “Hey, Tiny!”

“Veronica? What the fuck? What time is it?”

“Nine-thirty,” Veronica answered, “you’re usually awake by now, aren’t you? Sweet Pea let me up, you wouldn’t answer your phone.” She went to Toni’s nightstand, grabbing the device. “Which I see is because you didn’t plug it in last night.” Toni began rubbing her hands over her face as Veronica plugged her phone in for her.

“Alright,  _ mom _ ,” Toni grumbled, “what are you doing here?”

“I have a full day planned with Betty, and you work tonight, so I decided to make time for us to talk about your date last night! Especially since all I got last night was a ‘Cheryl’s back at the dorms and I made it home, goodnight’ text,” Veronica explained. “Toni! Spill! How was it?”

“Can I at least pee and brush my teeth first?”

“Ugh, fine,” Veronica agreed, collapsing into the pink haired girl’s bed as Toni pulled herself out of it.

As soon as she was back in the room, feeling a little more awake now, Veronica was sitting up on her blankets. “Alright, go! Tell me all about it!”

Toni gave her an overview of the date, recalling the important details but not getting super into anything specific. As she talked about it, she felt herself growing happier and happier with how the evening had gone, and she knew that Veronica must’ve noticed, because her friend became more and more excited as she went on. Toni finished her retelling by saying, “And I got her back to the dorms before I took the subway here, and we kissed again, and it was nice.  _ So _ nice. It all almost feels too good to be true, V.”

“Well, pretty sure it’s completely true,” Veronica assured her with a laugh.

“Yeah. Before the movie started last night, Cheryl made a point of telling me that it’s real, that she still feels the same things she described to me last weekend. That she isn’t having second thoughts, and that she wants it more the more we talk and see each other. So. Shit, man, I’m just, kind of still shook by the whole thing?”

Veronica laughed at her lightly. “I can’t wait till the conversation we have after you two fuck for the first time.”

Toni’s jaw dropped. “V!”

“Yeah, getting the v, that’s what I’m talking about.”

Toni grabbed her pillow all of the sudden, smacking the dark haired girl with it. “Shut up, oh my god.”

Suddenly there was knock on Toni’s bedroom door. “You guys okay in there?” he sounded pretty amused, and Toni was about to accuse him for being the reason Veronica had gotten into the apartment, but her other best friend was answering first.

“Sweets! Come in!”

Sweet Pea obeyed, opening the door and leaning against the frame, looking at the two of them with amusement. “I assume the topic of the discussion this morning is Cheryl?”

“Why would you let this devil into the apartment this early in the morning?” Toni demanded, and no sooner than she had finished the question, Veronica had wrenched the pillow out of Toni’s hand and smacked her right back with it.

“You  _ know _ you wanted to dish, don’t lie,” Veronica exclaimed. “Did she tell you, Sweets, about her date last night? She’s all sappy over it. She can’t believe it’s  _ real _ .”

“Yeah, she mentioned some stuff about it last night when she got in,” Sweet Pea answered with a laugh. “She definitely had heart eyes when she talked about it.”

“Uh, I  _ never _ have heart eyes,” Toni argued, though she wasn’t really convincing herself with the words, let alone either of her best friends.

“Tell that to  _ Cheryl _ ,” Veronica said with a snicker, “I have a feeling she would disagree.”

“So what was it that you said that started this pillow fight anyway?” Sweet Pea asked with a smirk.

“Nothing!” Toni exclaimed, at the same time as Veronica answered, “I mentioned her and Cheryl eventually having sex.”

“Ronnie! I swear to god, I’m going to kill you,” Toni exclaimed, lunging at the dark haired girl, who laughed and tried in vain to duck out of the way. The two of them wrestled there for a moment, until Veronica managed to grab a pillow and slam it into Toni’s side, causing the smaller girl to squeak a little in surprise, and Veronica used the opportunity to start tickling her. “Oh my—stop, V!”

Sweet Pea was practically cackling at the door as he watched the two friends play fight on Toni’s bed.

Suddenly, from Toni’s nightstand, her phone finally came back to life after having been plugged in for a good few minutes, and it began to buzz annoyingly with messages. “Ooh,” Veronica was saying suddenly, pulling away from Toni and toward the nightstand, “those were too many buzzes for them to all have been from me this morning.”

She grabbed Toni’s phone, and the pink haired girl practically lunged forward again to grab it back, but Veronica dodged out of the way.

“Oh my gosh, she sent you a good morning text. That’s so cute! And to think, you would’ve been so late to reply to it if I hadn’t shown up.” Veronica tutted at Toni as she handed over the phone, which Toni took back aggressively, huffing as she relaxed onto her mattress.

“I hate you.”

“You love me.”

Toni unlocked her phone, marking her texts from Veronica as read before switching over to her message conversation with Cheryl.

**Bombshell – Good morning, TT!**

**Bombshell – I think I remember you saying that you work today, but I’d love to see you again this weekend if you’re not busy for it all.**

**TT – I’m free all day tomorrow :)**

**Bombshell – Great! I can bring some lunch over around noon?**

**TT – It’s a date ;)**

“So,” Veronica was saying as Toni lowered her phone to her lap, “’TT’ huh?”

“Is that what Cheryl decided to start calling you?” Sweet Pea asked.

Toni glared at both of her friends. “If either of you start calling me that, I will absolutely, without a doubt, fight you.”

“Aww, cute. You guys already have your own personal pet names,” Sweet Pea teased with a dorky grin. “So ahead of the game.”

“We should get Cheryl’s thoughts on this,” Veronica stated seriously, and Toni furrowed her eyebrows as the woman grabbed her phone from her purse, which she’d evidently dropped on the floor by her shoes, and then sat back on the bed fully. All of the sudden, her phone was ringing Cheryl on speaker.

“Ronnie?” Cheryl answered, definitely not expecting her call.

“Hey, Cher! I’m with Toni and Sweets right now—we have just made the discovery of the  _ TT _ nickname.”

“I really hate you, Veronica,” Toni huffed out, running her hand through her hair.

Cheryl was laughing on the other side of the phone. “Oh, yes. Well, sorry to disappoint, V, but I’m going to have to politely ask that neither of you use that nickname for Toni, or she’s going to say that  _ I _ can’t use it anymore, and I’ve grown quite fond of it.”

“Wow, Tiny, you’ve already got her wrapped around your finger,” Sweet Pea said with a smirk.

“What was that?” Cheryl asked.

“Just Sweet Pea being a dick,” Toni called with an eyeroll. “I’ve been bombarded—I was sleeping peacefully until these barbarians decided to barge into my room.”

“Aren’t you a self-proclaimed badass?” Cheryl asked. “I would think you would be able to keep them out.”

“It’s because she doesn’t really  _ not _ want us here,” Veronica claimed. “She acted like she didn’t want me to show up this morning, but then she  _ gladly _ gushed about your date, so I know the truth.”

“Oh my god,” Toni groaned.

Suddenly, the three phones in the room, and Cheryl’s phone it seemed, buzzed with a simultaneous notification.

**Group Message: You, V-Ronnie, Juggle-Head, Sweets, Bombshell, Fangs, Kevin, and Betty Cooper.**

**Kevin – Hey all! Fangs and I were talking about our Thanksgiving Day plans and realized that this is our first year where we aren’t going home for Thanksgiving, each for our separate reasons. But we realized that we didn’t know everyone else’s plans, so if any of you guys will be in the city for the holiday and don’t have any plans, let us know! I would love to host a friends-giving this year!**

“Ooh, a Friendsgiving,” Veronica said, reading from her phone as Toni did as well.

“Well, I’m free that night,” Sweet Pea said.

“I’m working a daytime shift on Thanksgiving,” Toni remembered, “but I guess I’m free after that.”

“I sure as hell am not going home for Thanksgiving,” Veronica said with an eyeroll.

“I’m with you there,” Cheryl agreed.

They all went silent as they began to text in the group chat.

**V-Ronnie – I’m free! Friendsgiving!**

**Sweets – Ditto**

**Bombshell – Sounds good to me!**

**Toni – I’m free after six!**

**Juggle-Head – Why not? Better than my alternative plans: sitting on my couch by myself.**

**Betty Cooper – If Ronnie’s there, so am I. Definitely not planning on going home this week lol.**

**Kevin – Wow! Great! Everyone’s in! I will get back to everyone on the details, but it’ll be Thursday, definitely in the evening so Toni can make it, plus I think Fangs has work in the early afternoon.**

**Fangs – Correct**

**Kevin – *thumbs up***

“I had pretty much forgotten about Thanksgiving,” Veronica admitted. “Ever since Betty and I finally got together, I feel like I’ve been taking life one damn day a time, I forgot it was already this far into November.”

“I never go home for Thanksgiving,” Cheryl stated, “so I hadn’t even thought about it.”

“Pretty sure we’re all kind of in that boat.”

Sweet Pea snickered. “Look at us, bonding over all of our various parental issues.”

“Well,” Cheryl was saying through the phone suddenly, “it’s been lovely to talk to you all, but I have some things I have to do this morning, so I will talk to you all later! And see you tomorrow, TT!”

“Bye, Cheryl,” the three of them chorused, and when the call was hung up, Sweet Pea laughed and shook his head before asking, “You two want some breakfast?”

“Please!” Veronica answered brightly, and he nodded, heading for the kitchen.

Toni sighed, shaking her head at her friends. “You guys are going to kill me.”

“If you say so, Tiny,” Veronica bounced back, poking at Toni and getting a small chuckle from her. “See, you love us.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever.”

* * *

No knock on the front door of Toni’s apartment had ever made her as excited as when it came from Cheryl. It wasn’t something that had happened very many times to date, but on Sunday morning, the knock made Toni’s heart skip a beat. Not to mention, it was a little after noon, and Toni hadn’t had anything but a small breakfast, so the promise of food that came with Cheryl’s arrival was definitely helpful in lighting Toni’s expression.

She swung open the door, revealing Cheryl in a red, turtleneck sweater and a plaid skirt, her signature red lipstick completing the look. This woman really had no truly casual outfits, and Toni found it completely adorable. “Hey,” Toni greeted brightly, stepping backwards to let the redhead into the apartment, “what food did you bring?”

“Wow, I can tell you’re excited to see me,” Cheryl deadpanned with an eyeroll as she walked inside, Toni closing the door behind her and eyeing the takeout bag in Cheryl’s hand. “I couldn’t decide what sounded good so I just grabbed Chinese, since I  _ know _ from the leftovers that are always in your fridge that you eat a lot of it in  _ la maison de Toni et Sweet Pea _ .” Toni pursed her lips at the sound of Cheryl speaking French—considering how she’d never known that Cheryl could do that until two nights before, she knew that the redhead must be doing it just to get a reaction from Toni. “Speaking of, is he here? I did actually get enough for him.”

“No, he’s working,” Toni answered, trying to get the sound of Cheryl’s French out of her head so she could focus on the woman herself, who was sliding off her satin, burgundy, heeled boots. “But we can toss whatever’s extra in the fridge for when he gets back, he’ll be very appreciative. That was sweet of you to think of him.”

Cheryl shrugged, setting the bag of takeout on the coffee table and falling into the old couch comfortably. “It’s only polite,” she stated, but Toni just smiled and rolled her eyes as she walked into her living area as well, sitting down next to Cheryl as the redhead began opening up some of the takeout. “I didn’t know what exactly you liked, so I just got what I like? And a few extra things.”

“I’ll eat almost anything,” Toni admitted, waiting for Cheryl to grab a box before grabbing another one. “Thank you for buying.”

“Of course.” Cheryl looked at Toni with a pointed look. “It’s the least I can do in return for you paying for everything on Friday—cabs are not cheap, TT. And I  _ know _ you took the subway home that night too, because it took you longer to text me that you were home than it would’ve if you’d taken a cab.”

Toni blushed. “I didn’t want you to offer to pay for a cab for me, so I just didn’t say anything about it.”

Cheryl just rolled her eyes. “Anyway, I definitely didn’t mind lunch being my treat today.  _ And _ , I would love to treat you to lunch sometime this week if we can both find time.” Toni felt her heartrate pick up at the suggestion, but she was in the middle of chewing some fried rice, which she did her best to swallow quickly as she nodded.

“That sounds great to me,” she agreed, “I’m free around twelve-thirty for lunch every day, but I’ve only got a little over an hour, so it’s gotta be on or around campus.”

Cheryl nodded. “I think Tuesday would be best for me then, I have a two hour gap from twelve to two. Monday I have to eat my lunch right at twelve before I have like, three back to back classes.” She rolled her eyes. “I really love both of my majors, but sometimes I just think about how it would be so much simpler to only have one.”

“I seriously admire how much work you put into school, Cher,” Toni admitted. “You’re seriously so impressive.”

The blush that rose to Cheryl’s cheeks almost immediately kind of surprised Toni, and she assumed it meant that the redhead wasn’t used to receiving compliments on her work ethic. It was kind of ironic, considering how used to physical compliments she was—they hardly ever fazed her. But Cheryl was so much more than her looks, and Toni had known that ever since they first became friends. “Thank you,” Cheryl said softly, taking a bite of her food and chewing slowly.

“You mind if I turn on some music?” Toni wondered, and Cheryl shook her head.

“Not at all.” Toni grabbed the X-Box controller, powering on the console and navigating to Spotify, starting her playlist. It was a lot of alternative and pop rock, featuring a few classics and some other random additions.

With the music playing, and in between bites of Chinese food, they fell into conversation that was so easy to get caught up in; it could make Toni forget the rest of the world.

* * *

Toni heard her playlist playing as her eyes suddenly began to blink open. It took her a second to recall the events of the past few hours. She and Cheryl had filled up on Chinese food, shoving the rest into the messy fridge for Sweet Pea, and then they’d turned on Netflix. Toni had grabbed a blanket for them to share, forcing them to sit pretty close together, though of course, neither of them were complaining about that. She remembered resting her head against Cheryl’s shoulder, melting against the girl and being completely astounded at what it felt like to be so close to her. To smell her ever-present scent of vanilla and cherries. She had been so intoxicated by the moment that she’d forgotten the TV in front of her, and apparently, she’d fallen asleep.

Now, though, she realized that her head was resting in Cheryl’s lap. She felt a hand in her hair, fingernails gently scraping against her scalp relaxingly. Cheryl must’ve put the music back on instead of Netflix, but Toni wasn’t sure how long she’d been asleep for.

She let her eyes flicker back closed, since Cheryl hadn’t noticed that she was awake, and she didn’t want this feeling to end.

The front door opened, and she was tempted to sit up then, but Cheryl’s fingers in her hair didn’t still as she heard the redhead say, “Hey.”

“Oh, hey, Cheryl,” Sweet Pea greeted. “She’s asleep?”

“Yeah, we were watching Reign and she was out before we were halfway through an episode,” Cheryl said with a light chuckle, “so I guess I know how she feels about my show preferences.”

Sweet Pea laughed at that. “I doubt it had to do with that.”

“There’s Chinese food in the fridge for you, by the way. I brought extra.”

“Oh, sweet, thanks,” Sweet Pea said, and Toni heard him set his keys down on the counter and the fridge open. She knew that she should make it known that she was awake, but she was selfishly savoring this moment. “This is exactly what I needed, my boss never gives me a long enough break to actually get food.”

“Isn’t it like… a law that you have to get a break?”

“Yeah, but it always gets cut short because we’re always short staffed.”

“Where do you work?”

“It’s this restaurant a few blocks from here,” he said with a shrug. “They’re always understaffed for weekends and overstaffed on weekdays, so I’m thinking about getting a second job for the weekdays.”

“Wow. I admire that, that you’re willing to work so hard for what you have. You and Toni both… I can’t imagine working on top of school.”

“You’re double majoring though, right?”

“Yeah, but I know it’s different. I’m not taking thirty hours just because I’m double majoring, you know? But you guys are taking a full time load of classes and working like, twenty hours a week, and I just really admire it.”

Sweet Pea laughed. “Thanks, Red.” Toni heard him start eating some of the leftovers, and she gave in, deciding that she should probably indicate that she was awake now. So she let her eyes flicker open again and then adjusted her neck slightly. Cheryl’s hands stilled all of the sudden, and Toni rotated how she was laying so that she was face up in Cheryl’s lap, looking up at her face.

“Hey there,” Cheryl said teasingly.

“Hey yourself,” Toni murmured, her voice sounding a bit scratchy. “How long did I sleep for?”

“A little over an hour, I think. You didn’t make it through half an episode.”

“Not my fault that you’re comfy,” Toni murmured, smiling up at the redhead. Then, despite how comfortable she was, she sat up and looked over at Sweet Pea. “Hey, Sweets.”

“Hey, Tiny,” he answered, smirking at her as he ate his Chinese food. “Good nap?”

“Mmhmm,” Toni hummed, hoping that she wasn’t blushing.

“Veronica started texting you I think,” Cheryl said, “and after your phone vibrated over and over for like, five minutes, she texted me.”

Toni laughed. “Sounds like Veronica. Was it for anything important?”

“She’s trying to get a group to go Black Friday shopping with her,” Cheryl answered, lifting an eyebrow.

“She’s fucking crazy,” Sweet Pea said, shaking his head, and Toni nodded.

“Yeah, I don’t know how last year didn’t scare her from doing that shit in  _ New York City _ .”

Cheryl’s lips turned up into a smirk. “You know I was with her last year?” Toni lifted her eyebrows, pursing her lips for a moment before she answered.

“I had forgotten, but I’m not surprised. You would be the person with the willpower to deal with it,” Toni said with a shake of her head. “Well,” she continued, grabbing her phone off of the coffee table dramatically, “ _ I’m _ definitely not going.”

Sure enough, she had a series of text messages from Veronica.

**V-Ronnie – TONI!!!!!**

**V-Ronnie – Black Friday! You! Me! Betty! Cheryl! Double date all night long les goooo!**

**V-Ronnie – Dude don’t ignore me, you got out of it last year.**

**V-Ronnie – Toni!**

**V-Ronnie – TINY TONI!**

**V-Ronnie – We need to start planning now so we can decide all of our stops!!!!**

**V-Ronnie – WTF are you doing answer meeee!**

**V-Ronnie – I’m texting Cheryl and if you’re not with her, Betty and I are coming to your apartment and we’re gonna slam your buzzer until you let us up!!!!!!**

**V-Ronnie – Ok Cheryl said you’re asleep on her lap which is ADORBS so I’ll let this slide.**

“Oh my god, Veronica is literally insane,” Toni muttered.

**Tiny Toni – Dude. You’re crazy. Also, no I’m not going Black Friday shopping. You three can go, but I’m going to get some much needed sleep. Plus I work a long ass shift on Friday, the last thing I need is to spend the whole night before (after working AND hanging out with everyone) out shopping.**

**V-Ronnie – Ugh ok fine.**

**V-Ronnie – I’m not buying you anything, though. So don’t ask!!!**

**Tiny Toni – I wasn’t going to, you weirdo.**

“Alright, Ronnie situation has been dealt with,” Toni said, and Cheryl chuckled. She was stretching her arms over her head. “Sorry for sleeping on you for so long, that was probably uncomfortable.”

Cheryl shook her head. “You started slipping off my shoulder which was when I realized you were asleep, but once you were on my lap it was fine,” she teased. “So, no Black Friday shopping for you?”

“Definitely not,” Toni confirmed. “Plus I work Friday, like, all day. Two to midnight.”

Cheryl furrowed her eyebrows. “That’s such a long shift.”

“Yeah, but it’s worth it. Working on Thursday gets me time and a half, of course, but so does Black Friday at my bar,  _ thank god _ . So I took someone else’s shift on top of mine for the ten hours.”

“Do you work all weekend too?”

Toni nodded, feeling a little bad about it all of the sudden. Cheryl wasn’t trying to make her feel bad, of course, but at the time Toni had been making her availability for this weekend, she hadn’t had any plans, or anticipated having any. “Yeah, I’m working Saturday and Sunday in the evening.”

Cheryl hummed thoughtfully, nodding. “Okay.”

Toni’s hand came up, brushing some of that beautiful hair out of Cheryl’s face without even realizing she was doing it. “Why, what are you thinking?”

“Just trying to think of times I can hang out with you,”

“I’m sure we can find some,” Toni promised with a small smile, resting her hand on the back of the couch.

“Well,” Sweet Pea said suddenly, tossing an empty takeout box into the trash and breaking the two women out of their little bubble, “thanks for the food, Cheryl. I’ll be in my room, if either of you break eye contact eventually and realize you need me for something.”

Toni was definitely blushing now as she turned to her roommate. “See you, Sweets.” He nodded to her, smirking again and then disappeared down the hall, his door closing a second later. Toni returned her gaze to the redhead in front of her. “I have an confession.”

Cheryl lifted one of those perfectly trimmed eyebrows curiously.

“I woke up right before Sweet Pea walked in,” Toni admitted, and Cheryl opened her mouth a little in surprise, “but I pretended to still be asleep because I was so comfy.”

“Wow, how could I ever trust you after this?” Cheryl asked, feigning offense as Toni smirked. “You’re going to have to work hard to make up for this discretion, Toni Topaz.” Toni bit down on her lip, holding back a grin as she tried to play along with Cheryl.

Pulling her feet underneath her, Toni leaned a bit closer to the redhead. “Well I better start soon, huh?”

“Definitely,” Cheryl breathed out, her gaze falling to Toni’s lips, knowing exactly what the pink haired girl was thinking. And just a moment later, Toni connected their lips in a soft kiss. It stayed slow and gentle for a few moments, and then Cheryl began to pull away to take in a small breath, and Toni caught her bottom lip gently with her teeth, eliciting a small noise from Cheryl as Toni pressed their lips together more firmly.

Cheryl let Toni take full control of the kiss, and it escalated into an assault of tongues. Cheryl hummed, a sound that could’ve so easily been a moan, as her left hand came to Toni’s waist. Although she didn’t really pull Toni at all, the gesture felt like a guide for Toni, and pulled up slightly onto her left leg as she swung her right over Cheryl’s lap, settling onto it and deepening their kiss. Cheryl’s hands shifted to Toni’s lower back, and Toni could feel those short nails—which she recalled were painted red this weekend—digging into her skin through her tank top. Toni pushed Cheryl’s hair out of the way, tangling her fingers into it as she took Cheryl’s lip in between her own and her teeth, trying to be gentle despite herself.

Then, finally, as she pressed herself against Cheryl as best as she could, she heard the woman let out a little moan, her nails digging in even more. Toni felt heat pooling in between her legs, and Cheryl’s hands suddenly lowered so they were cupping Toni’s ass, squeezing slightly as Toni bit down on her lower lip. Toni groaned at the feeling, and then broke their kiss to gasp air. Her eyes flickered open as she rested her forehead against Cheryl’s, and immediately she noticed that Cheryl’s lipstick was smeared all around her lips. “Oh my god,” she murmured, and then Cheryl’s eyes opened curiously.

She let out a little laugh. “That’s a bit of a mess,” she said softly, lifting her pale hand to swipe her thumb under and around Toni’s lips gently. “Okay, that didn’t help  _ that _ much, but I tried.”

Toni chuckled, pulling back a little. “Your lap really is comfy,” she said teasingly, grinding down a little, working herself up and, judging by Cheryl’s darkening gaze, doing the same to the redhead.

“I’m sure,” Cheryl agreed, amused. But then her expression fell a little and she sighed. “Unfortunately, my free time today to spend with you is almost up. Fangs and I are supposed to meet up to work on homework for the finance class we’re both in. I have to be back on campus in about half an hour.”

Toni frowned. “Damn. And I wasted an hour sleeping.”

“I didn’t mind,” Cheryl promised again, smiling. “Can I use your bathroom?”

“Of course.”

They sat there for a moment, and then Cheryl lifted her eyebrows. “Toni, you’re going to have to get off of me so I can go to the bathroom.”

“Make me,” Toni challenged, narrowing her eyebrows as a smirk came to her lips.

Cheryl hands, which had settled on Toni’s waist after their make out session had drawn to a close, suddenly lowered to Toni’s thighs, slipping underneath them and gripping gently. She lifted slightly as she turned, causing Toni to topple off of her lap and into the couch. “I’m always up for a challenge, TT. And you’re smaller than me.”

“Mmhmm, okay Bombshell. I’ll remember that.”

Cheryl disappeared around the corner and Toni heard her enter the bathroom.

Sighing, the pink haired girl grabbed her phone and opened her selfie camera, checking out the damage from Cheryl’s lipstick. It really was smeared all over and around her lips, and she chuckled, shaking her head. She wiped at it with her thumb, getting as much of it off as she could without a towel or water. Then she stared at her stained lips for a second longer, thinking to just a minute earlier, when they’d been pressed against Cheryl’s, and she sighed again. What a peaceful day it had been.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I haven't gotten the chance to watch the new Riverdale episode, probably won't get around to it until tomorrow, so I'm kind of a little bit avoiding my Twitter TL to stay away from too many spoilers. But I'm still active on Twitter always lol so go ahead and hit me up on there if you're interested @BrittzandTana :) If you check out the links in my Twitter bio, you can see how to get sneak peeks and early updates :)  
> Thank you all so much for reading, I've been appreciating you and all your kudos and comments so much <3 Seriously, comments make my day!!  
> I'll see you all next week!! <3 I hope you lovelies have a great weekend!!


	9. Who You Trying To Impress?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Friendsgiving happens, so the gang's gotta know about Cheryl and Toni dating.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello lovelies! Thisssss is definitely a day late, I am so so sorry about that! I have literally no excuse this time, I just forgot. Well, I guess my excuse COULD be that I had kind of a bad day yesterday, but that's not a valid excuse so don't let me get away with it XD  
> I'm glad you guys are enjoying this story, I really do like it a lot so I hope you keep on enjoying <3 I appreciate all of your kudos and comments so so much, I love getting positive feedback when I first start writing for a fandom haha.  
> So without further ado, enjoy the new chapter!xx

**** Thursday morning, Toni woke up relieved that there was no class that day. A five day weekend was heaven to most students, and although Toni would be pretty busy working during a lot of it, she was still happy about the lack of classes.

As had become her habit, the first thing she did upon waking up was grab her phone. Cheryl was  _ always _ awake before her, and she’d learned over the past few days that it was because the redhead was up at seven every weekday morning, and by nine on weekends, unless inhibited by alcohol or some extenuating circumstances. That’s how Toni knew that Cheryl’s text messages didn’t come directly after  _ she _ woke up, because Toni usually woke up to them having been sent at around eight.

Toni herself usually woke up at nine, because her first class every day was at ten. It didn’t give her a lot of time to throw on an outfit and her makeup and grab a granola bar for breakfast, but it was enough.

Today, although it was nine, she didn’t have anywhere to be until two, when her two to six shift started. After that, she would be going to Kevin’s apartment, where Friendsgiving was being hosted. It was sure to be an interesting night.

She’d thought about it a lot over the past few days, actually, because it occurred to her that the only people who would be there who  _ knew _ about… whatever was happening between her and Cheryl were Sweet Pea, Veronica, and probably Betty. Everyone else would be clueless. And Toni didn’t care who knew, and she didn’t think that Cheryl cared either, but they hadn’t talked about it, and they hadn’t put any sort of definition on their relationship.  _ Dating _ , she supposed, was the easiest term to tack on, because it didn’t imply any sort of exclusivity. And she wouldn’t assume exclusivity this early on in them dating, nor would she ever do it without having a conversation about it first, even if she was completely sure that Cheryl wasn’t seeing anyone else.

So she hadn’t said anything about her thoughts on the matter to Cheryl, and Cheryl hadn’t brought it up either.

While they hadn’t had any sort of conversation in relation to that, they had had a number of other conversations over the past few days. Toni found herself learning so much about Cheryl that she somehow never knew, little things that she supposed friends never really asked about. She learned Cheryl’s favorite breakfast food – French toast. She learned that Cheryl couldn’t fall asleep with socks on. She learned that Cheryl loved going out on boats, but that she hadn’t ever since her brother Jason had passed away from the boating accident. She learned those things and so many others, and she just kept wanting for more.

Other than the lunch they’d made time for on Tuesday, they hadn’t seen each other more than in mere passing since Sunday, not even on the class-less Wednesday, and it was kind of infuriating. Of course, she loved to spend time with Cheryl, but after their shared moment on the couch on Sunday, she would think of those beautifully plump, red lips and want so badly to kiss them, suck them, bite them. She would think of those nails digging into her back, those gentle hands cupping her ass, pulling her closer.

She was getting desperate.

Not to mention the  _ flirting _ . It had increased by a tenfold after Sunday, and Toni was honestly surprised at how they managed to keep it up. Flirting had always felt to Toni like a way to start a connection, so maybe she’d thought that since she and Cheryl had been friends for so long, they wouldn’t linger in the flirting phase for very long. And it hadn’t been that long, yes, but Toni never wanted to stop flirting with Cheryl Blossom. She loved the way Cheryl would react to a flirty comment, and she loved the way her heart would pound when Cheryl sent her one via text. But  _ god _ did some of them make Toni need to squeeze her thighs together.

Maybe that was the worst part – their flirting and teasing had started to turn slightly sexual, and Toni hadn’t gotten laid in quite a while. She hadn’t even touched herself in about two weeks, which was ridiculously long for her. Soon, she would have to, because teasing comments from Cheryl were becoming harder and harder to deal with. Especially in those occasions where Cheryl would use a bit of French to replace some random phrase, and even  _ reading _ them with Cheryl’s voice in her head would have Toni swooning.

She was a mess of emotions thanks to Cheryl Blossom, but she definitely wasn’t mad about it.

So Thursday morning, reading her text from Cheryl, she really couldn’t wait until they would finally get to hang out that night, even with all of their friends. It would be better than nothing.

**Bombshell – Good morning, TT! Happy Thanksgiving! I’m really thankful that we’re getting to hang out tonight!**

**TT – Morning! And ditto. I hope you don’t mind me stealing some kisses in front of the whole group tonight, because I really miss your lips. I only got that one short kiss on Tuesday and it wasn’t enough to hold me over.**

Normally, Toni would immediately roll out of bed and start getting ready after that, but since she didn’t need to be out and about yet, she stayed curled up in her blankets, waiting for Cheryl’s reply. She felt kind of silly any time she just sat in wait for a reply, but she got so excited for messages from Cheryl sometimes that she didn’t care how stupid she felt for doing it.

**Bombshell – You won’t hear any complaints from me about kisses.**

**Bombshell – Also, pretty sure most everyone who is going to be at Friendsgiving already knows that we’re dating.**

Toni was surprised at that, and she lifted an eyebrow as she replied.

**TT – Oh really?**

**Bombshell – Yeah, I mentioned it to Fangs on Sunday, because he asked where I’d been and I told him and he was like “wow you’ve been hanging out with Toni a lot recently” so. And since he and Kevin are basically dating, I’m sure he told him. And that leaves Jughead? So maybe he doesn’t know.**

**TT – Well then, I will definitely not hesitate to get some kisses tonight.**

**Bombshell – Good. You should wear that gloss that you used when you did my makeup. It tasted good.**

**TT – Mm, we’ll see. Although, that lip gloss DID look good on you, so I’m sure it would look equally as good smudged with your red lipstick haha.**

**Bombshell – Would you be shocked if I told you I wasn’t planning on wearing red lipstick tonight? I was thinking one of my dark nudes. Especially if I’m going to be wearing it out all night Black Friday shopping.**

**TT – Surprised, sure, but not shocked. But I mean, you’re gonna look hot no matter what lipstick you wear.**

**Bombshell – Duh. But I still want to impress as much as possible.**

**TT – Who are you trying to impress, Bombshell?**

**Bombshell – Hm, who do you think, Cha-Cha?**

**TT – Well it certainly isn’t me, because your shade of lipstick will definitely not change how impressed I am by how you look. People, including me, call you Cheryl Bombshell for a reason. You’re sexy as fuck, Cher.**

**Bombshell – Tell me something I don’t know, TT. ;)**

**Bombshell – But thank you xx**

**TT – Ugh the x’s don’t work like real kisses.**

**Bombshell – I’m sure you can wait until tonight for a kiss, Toni.**

**TT – Maybe. It’ll be easier to wait once I’m distracted by work, but right now I’m doing nothingggg at all :(**

**Bombshell – Are you still in bed?**

**TT – Of course. It’s not like I have a reason to be up, even on a normal class day I would’ve only been awake for like, ten minutes tops.**

**Bombshell – Meanwhile, I’m fully ready for the day today.**

**TT – What are you even doing today before Friendsgiving?**

**Bombshell – I’m going with Kevin to get supplies for tonight. Which includes alcohol, if you have any suggestions.**

**TT – Ooh all I need is some bomb pinot noir with a thanksgiving turkey and I’m happy!**

**Bombshell – Alright, pinot noir is on my list then!**

**TT – Thanks :)**

**TT – Ugh but you talking about actually getting up and going somewhere is making me feel like I should get up and ready.**

**Bombshell – You’re a mess, TT.**

**Bombshell – IMG_342**

**Bombshell – Sneak peek at my Friendsgiving outfit xx**

Toni bit down on her lip as she looked at the picture Cheryl had sent. It was just of her upper half. She was wearing a tight, black turtleneck, and even though it was a full-coverage kind of top, the curve of her breasts was still so defined. She was wearing her usual full face of makeup, but sure enough, her lips were a nude shade rather than her usual red. But those lips were still just as kissable, and Toni heard herself groan a little.

**TT – Yep, lipstick didn’t change a thing. Your lips are still taunting me either way.**

**Bombshell – IMG_343**

The second picture was a follow up to the first, but in this one, Cheryl was looking away from the camera, and she had her lower lip in between her teeth. With the way Toni’s body reacted, someone might’ve thought she’d received a way more inappropriate picture.

**TT – Such a tease.**

**Bombshell – Who? Me? No way.**

**TT – Haha. So funny.**

**Bombshell – ;)**

**TT – Ok, dragging my ass out of bed so I can get my revenge.**

**Bombshell – How do you mean??**

Toni didn’t answer the text message, instead abandoning her phone on her bed as she left her bedroom for the bathroom. She quickly used the restroom, washed her face and brushed her teeth, and pulled her hair up into a high ponytail. She then hurried back into her room, planting herself at her desk and grabbing her makeup and makeup mirror.

It took her about twenty minutes to get through her usual makeup routine, and then she coated her lips in the gloss that Cheryl had requested. She then let her hair down, leaving it in messy waves around her.

The last step was to pick an outfit. Layers were the key here, because she would be wearing the same outfit to work as she did to Friendsgiving. So she slid on some mesh fishnets and black cutoffs, and after grabbing one of her lacier black bras, she looked through her tops quickly. Selecting a white, fitted t-shirt, she slipped it over the dark bra and tucked it into her shorts, cuffing the sleeves. She glanced at herself in her mirror, happy to see that her bra was visible through the fabric.

She wouldn’t wear it to work like that, though, she would need something to cover it. So she grabbed her pink flannel, and for now she tied it around her waist. Lastly, she grabbed her leather jacket, which she wouldn’t put on now, but it would of course top off her outfit. It was getting to be winter in New York City, after all.

She would wear her lace up, heeled boots as well, but she wasn’t walking out just yet, so she set them next to her bed where she tossed her jacket.

Now presentable, Toni sat on the edge of her bed and grabbed her phone, finding that she another text from Cheryl.

**Bombshell – Toniiiiii don’t ignore me :(**

It had been sent right after her previous text, so their conversation thread had been dead for nearly half an hour since Toni had abandoned her phone. Switching over to her camera app, she switched it over to the selfie mode and held it away from herself, trying to find the best angle to photograph herself. She wanted her cleavage – and her bra – to be visible in it. She bit down on her lower lip, imitating Cheryl’s expression somewhat, except she kept her eyes directly on the camera. Then she snapped the photo and sent it off.

**TT – Sorry, was getting ready. Xx**

**TT – IMG_238**

The reply came instantly, despite the half hour lull.

**Bombshell – Damn. Now who’s the one teasing?**

**Bombshell – You owe me an extra kiss later in reparations for teasing me :(**

**TT – And what do you owe me for teasing me???**

**Bombshell – Uh, nothing, you’ve missed your opportunity to demand reparations.**

**TT – I was not made aware of this demands rule, so I demand that I get to make a delayed demand.**

**Bombshell – Fine. What are your demands, Cha-Cha?**

**TT – You owe ME an extra kiss later.**

**Bombshell – If you could see me right now, Toni, you would be shocked by how hard I’m rolling my eyes at you.**

**TT – Hey, I’d watch who you’re making fun off, Cher, I can take kisses away just as easily as I can give them.**

**Bombshell – As if you could get through tonight without kissing me.**

**TT – I wish I could challenge you on this, but we both know you’re right.**

**Bombshell – Hah. So I win.**

**TT – Guess so…**

**TT – What do you want as your prize? ;)**

**Bombshell – I want you to promise to kiss me LATER and stop trying to turn me on with your stupid teasing selfie because I’m walking to Kevin’s apartment right now so I’m in public and it isn’t fair because at least YOU are in the privacy of your bedroom. :(**

**TT – Aww, poor baby. I promise to kiss you later, Red.**

**Bombshell – You know, quite a few people call me that, but what if I started calling everyone by THEIR hair color? I’m rolling my eyes again, you can’t see.**

**TT – Lol. You can’t do that to me, because Pink is a singer, so.**

**Bombshell – And Red is a Russian criminal from Litchfield Prison. Again, rolling my eyes, TT.**

**TT – I get it, you don’t think my jokes are funny and you just never stop rolling your eyes at me lol.**

**TT – Do you want me to stop calling you Red?**

**Bombshell – No, I kinda like it.**

**TT – Then what was the point of this conversation?**

**Bombshell – I was just thinking aloud via text to you because you happen to be the person I text the most now.**

Toni chuckled, and as she did, she realized that she’d had a smile glued to her face through the whole conversation with the redhead. She was really in it deep with this girl, which was hardly surprising, considering how long she’d been developing feelings for her.

**TT – Ditto, Cher.**

**Bombshell – Well, I have arrived at Kevin’s apartment. I’ll make sure and grab that pinot noir. Text me before you go to work!**

**TT – Ok, I will. See you tonight, Cheryl xx**

**Bombshell – Can’t wait! Xx**

* * *

Toni got into work that day already feeling tired. Without much to do that morning, she’d ended up doing a full cleaning of her apartment. Sweet Pea had pitched in before he’d also headed off to work at eleven. She’d cleaned the bathroom until it sparkled, organized her room, which wasn’t dirty per se, but things were definitely not in her place. Tackling the kitchen was the hardest, because she had to clean out the fridge, throwing away anything that either had passed its expiration date or that she could no longer recognize as any type of food.

Cleaning had left her feeling pretty content, but also a bit wiped out. She’d only had time for a half hour nap before she had to start heading to the bar, the walk draining what felt like the last of her energy.

So when she slid behind the bar, which was still pretty empty for now, her coworker – a girl named Hanna – looked at her curiously. “It’s still early, what’s got you looking so exhausted?”

“Cleaning,” Toni answered with a laugh, “to be honest.”

“What were you cleaning for? You having guests over later?”

“No, I just felt like I needed to be doing something productive. Obviously no classes today, and I don’t have any homework for the long weekend – thank god. But my girl—” She cut herself off immediately, because  _ no _ , Cheryl was not her girlfriend. “Um, I mean, the girl I’m dating, she was out running errands with our friend for Friendsgiving tonight, and my roommate had work, and I just felt like I needed to be doing something.”

Hanna lifted a curious eyebrow. “Don’t think I didn’t see you stumble through the half the word  _ girlfriend _ , Toni,” she tutted. “I didn’t know you’d started seeing someone.”

“It’s recent,” Toni admitted, feeling kind of weird talking about this with someone who wasn’t Veronica or Sweet Pea. She wasn’t in the habit of getting to know most of her coworkers, but Hanna had been working here as long as she had, so naturally, they’d had quite a few conversations during slow shifts. “But we’ve known each other for over a year.”

Hanna hummed thoughtfully. “I always feel like it’s too hard to start dating a friend. It gets complicated, you know? I dated a guy who I’d been friends with for a couple of years, and he totally  _ changed _ once we got together. He had all these ridiculous expectations of me, and suddenly I was supposed to conform to his idea of a girlfriend. Even though he’d claimed to have liked me the way I was.” She shook her head. “Not that that happens in every situation, of course.”

Toni nodded. “Yeah, well, I’ve been totally crushing on Cheryl since I met her, but she’s been in and out of a few relationships, and over the summer she was out of the country. We’ve always been pretty good friends, but recently we had reason to get closer, and then she admitted that over the few weeks, she’s been developing feelings for me.”

Hanna laughed, getting a curious gaze from Toni. “That must’ve felt kind of funny. To hear that she’d liked you for a few weeks when you’ve liked her for a year?”

“Kind of,” Toni admitted, “but it was more scary. You know, feelings come and go. Obviously, mine haven’t gone, but it felt… still kind of feels all too possible that hers could go. You know? I want to protect my heart, but also I just value her as a person in my life, so I’m scared of this falling apart and losing her completely.”

“Well, is it going well?” Hanna wondered, and Toni felt an involuntary smile coming to her lips.

“Yeah.”

“No complaints so far?” Hanna asked, looking like she was about to make a point. Toni shook her head. “Then I would do your best to stop thinking about what you’re scared of. If something gives you reason to pull back and protect yourself, or your friendship with her or whatever, then okay. But while everything is good, loosen up. Let your relationship  _ grow _ . The last thing you want is for her to think you’re holding back because you don’t trust how she feels.”

Toni nodded slowly. “That’s actually really good advice.”

Hanna smirked. “Wow, it’s almost like I’m a bartender. I’d get you a drink, but turns out  _ you’re _ a bartender too.”

“Smartass.”

* * *

As soon as Toni left her shift, she pulled her flannel off and tied it around her waist, tugging on her leather jacket to fight the sharp chill of the New York City air. Kevin’s apartment was an easy subway trip away, so she headed for the nearest staircase to the underground as she grabbed her phone to text Cheryl.

**TT – I’m omw from work! Is everyone already there?**

**Bombshell – Just Kevin, Fangs and me right now! I think B and V are gonna be here in about fifteen, so maybe you can beat them haha.**

**TT – Doubtful, it’s prime time for subways to be packed right now.**

**Bombshell – But it’s a holiday, people aren’t rushing home from work.**

**TT – Good point. Well, we’ll see. See you soon xx**

She slipped her phone into her jacket pocket and navigated to the train she needed.

It took her about fifteen minutes to get to Kevin’s apartment building, and she hit the buzzer for his number. The door unlocked without any voice from the apartment, so Toni let herself in and started for the place. It’d been a little while since she was at Kevin’s apartment, but thankfully he had sent a recap of how to get there and which apartment was his in the group text.

As soon as she knocked on the door, it flew open, revealing Kevin with a smile on his face. “Toni! Come on in! How was work?”

“Started off fine, and then at around four, all of the people who are planning on drinking through their sad Thanksgiving started filling our seats. I’ve listened to so many sob stories today,” Toni answered with an eyeroll, shrugging off her jacket as she turned her attention to the apartment. It was about as big as hers and Sweet Pea’s, but since it only had one bedroom, the living area was more spacious and there was room for a small dining table.

That’s where everyone was right now; Cheryl, Fangs, Veronica and Betty were all sitting around the table, taking up all four chairs.

“As you can see,” Kevin said, “some of us will be enjoying our Friendsgiving dinner in the living room.”

“No,” Fangs piped up from the table, stopping whatever conversation had been being had between the four of them, “Jug just texted me back and said he can bring a few fold up chairs. We should be able to fit everyone. Worst case, one of us gets a lap.”

“I’m not sitting on your lap,” Kevin told Fangs with an eyeroll, and Toni laughed, stepping further into the apartment and hanging her jacket on the coat rack that Kevin had. He was the only person Toni knew who actually had a coat rack, but it was so  _ Kevin _ that it had never surprised her. Now that she was fully inside, she could smell the delicious scents of an assortment of food coming from the kitchen, and she felt her stomach grumble a little.

“Toni can sit on Cheryl’s lap,” Veronica suggested, “the size ratio works since she’s so tiny.”

“Fuck you,” Toni said to her best friend, ignoring her hunger and walking toward the table toward Cheryl, who was smirking at her. “I don’t sit on people’s laps – at least not if I’m also facing away from them.”

Cheryl blushed as Toni winked at her.

“Gross,” Veronica muttered.

“What do you mean  _ gross _ ?” Toni demanded. “You know last week I was walking to your dorm to drop by and I heard you two fucking?  _ That’s _ gross.”

Veronica looked mortified, but Betty was biting down on her lip to keep from laughing. “Wait, wait,  _ what _ did you hear?”

“ _ You _ .”

Betty let out a triumphant laugh, and Veronica shoved her. “I told you, babe,” Betty said, “you’re  _ loud _ .”

“The dorms have thin walls,” Cheryl offered as well.

“I hate you all,” Veronica growled, getting up from her seat at the table. “I’m going to use the bathroom.”

Betty rolled her eyes playfully at her girlfriend as she fled the room. Toni smirked, taking her chair and sitting down next to Cheryl. Kevin had come up to the table and started saying something to Fangs that Betty seemed to be paying attention to, so Toni turned her full attention to the redhead next to her. “How was  _ your _ day?”

“Not super interesting. Shopping with Kev was fun, though. And I didn’t forget your pinot noir.”

Toni grinned. “Yay! I am definitely going to need a drink after work today. Thankfully I was working with one of the other great bartenders today, so we pretty much powered through.”

“I’m glad,” Cheryl said softly. “It sucks that you have to work so much tomorrow, though.”

“I know,” Toni agreed with a nod. “Maybe Saturday, like midday, if you’re free, we can do something? I won’t work until five.”

“Definitely, TT. But right now, I think you owe me something…”

Toni smirked, scooting her chair a little closer to Cheryl’s before leaning forward and pressing her lips to the redhead’s softly. Cheryl kissed her back a bit more aggressively than the pink haired girl had expected, but as much as Toni would love to straddle her lap right then and there, she knew it wasn’t the right location to do so, so she broke the kiss after a few seconds. “Good enough for you, Bombshell?”

“Hmm,” Cheryl hummed thoughtfully, “fine, you can consider your debts repaid and your discretions forgiven.”

“Thank god,” Toni played along dramatically.

Suddenly, a buzzing from the door drew everyone’s attention away from their separate conversations, and Kevin hurried to let the next guests up. It had to be Jughead and Sweet Pea, who were probably coming by together, especially if Jughead was bringing extra chairs. Toni realized suddenly that Veronica had returned from the bathroom, her hand on the back of Betty’s chair as she stood instead of sitting, since Toni had stolen her seat. When she made eye contact with her friend, Veronica gave her a teasing smile and wiggled her eyebrows, to which Toni responded with an eyeroll.

Sure enough, when there was a knock on the door, Kevin opened it to reveal Sweet Pea and Jughead, each of them with two fold out chairs in either hand. “These were not fun to get here,” Jughead said with a grunt, “where can we put them?”

Everyone jumped up from their seats at the table to push the chairs toward one side to make room for the other four. It was going to be a tight fit around the table that was designed for four— _ maybe _ six—chairs. But at least the eight of them were pretty good friends—or dating, in some combinations or another, so sitting close wouldn’t be that big of a deal.

After the fold out chairs had been set down, and they’d all collapsed into a seat again,  Sweet Pea glanced around at everyone else in the room and groaned. “You guys are all paired off, of course this is how our friend group goes.”

“You and Jug just need to start dating now,” Betty offered with a teasing smile, looking at Jughead in amusement. Toni didn’t know all that much about Betty aside from what Veronica had said to her, because the raven haired girl had only met the blonde earlier this semester. But she was pretty sure that Betty and Jughead had been friends for a long while.

Jughead gagged at the suggestion. “Sorry, nothing personal, Sweets,” he followed up with, “I’m  _ way _ too ace for that.”

“Yeah no man, don’t worry,” Sweet Pea replied with a laugh and a shake of his head. “So what’s the Friendsgiving plan? Gotta admit, I don’t really know what Friendsgiving means.”

Kevin grinned, clapping his hands together excitedly. “We have  _ lots _ of food, most of it is cooking right now. On top of that, we have assortment of bingeworthy shows and also some quality movies, Cards Against Humanity and some regular cards, some other games—basically whatever Fangs dug out of my closet for me, and then, of course, a  _ lot _ of alcohol. Although, I would suggest that those of us who plan on going out shopping after this don’t get too intoxicated.”

“Please,” Toni piped up, “don’t shop all night while wasted.”

Veronica gave her best friend a soft smile. “Toni is scarred from what almost happened to me—and Cheryl kind of—last year.”

“What happened?” Betty asked, lifting her eyebrows in curiosity.

“We were at Nordstrom, and I was reaching for a shoe—literally just to look at it—and some lady straight up jumped on me, claiming that it was the last one. Cheryl had been a couple of racks away, and by the time she made it over, I’d managed to push the crazy lady off me, and of course I let her have the shoe. But after that, a store manager came up to us and was all like ‘Why would you come into this establishment and start ruckus like this’ and we were like, uh, the fuck? We almost got kicked out, but Cheryl literally made them watch back their security camera footage to prove that I did nothing wrong,” Veronica stated in a huff. “But it was kind of scary. The shoe was a very pointy, albeit very beautiful, Louboutin, and it came very close to my eyeball.”

“Wow, that’s one of the most exciting Black Friday stories I’ve ever heard,” Jughead said approvingly, nodding.

“Uh, we should not be encouraging this,” Toni argued, crossing her arms. “Ronnie literally called me to be like ‘Hey, I almost got stabbed by a Louboutin because some crazy lady thought I wanted to fight her over it, we’re going to the next store!’”

“It’s not like anything  _ really _ bad happened,” Cheryl offered gently, and Toni did her best to send the redhead a glare, but it was probably obvious to anyone paying close attention how her face softened almost immediately upon looking at her. “Plus, we’ve got a bigger group going this year. Fangs will be our muscle.”

Sweet Pea looked at Fangs curiously. “You’re going?” Fangs looked a bit embarrassed as his gaze turned to Kevin, who was just smiling innocently, and Sweet Pea smirked, fake coughing to say, “ _ Whipped _ .”

“Hey!” Fangs huffed out. “I’m not!”

“Now, now, Sweets,” Veronica tutted, “this is no time for teasing.”

“Said the queen of teasing people for anything regarding relationships.” Toni scoffed at her friend, who just grinned toothily.

“I’ve got an idea,” Betty interrupted the bickering suddenly, “how about we get some of that alcohol out?”

“Now there’s a good idea,” Cheryl agreed, giving the blonde a smile and then nudging Toni’s foot with her own under the table before standing. Toni watched her walk around the table toward Kevin’s kitchen, the guy following her. “We got a lot of different things because everyone likes different things.”

“Food will be ready in about twenty minutes, anyone want a beer till then?”

Everyone agree to a beer, and Kevin and Cheryl brought some out to the table, Toni being the last to get one as Cheryl came to sit back down, setting Toni’s beer down in front of her as she held her own as well. “Thanks,” Toni said softly. She was having trouble keeping her eyes off of the redhead.

Cheryl’s full outfit was a lot for a poor, horny Toni to handle, she was realizing. Yes, she was wearing a turtleneck sweater, covering revealing skin on her upper half, but her bottom half was a totally different story. She was wearing mesh tights and high waisted, slightly worn looking black shorts. Her sweater was tucked into them, and the whole outfit hugged her body  _ so well _ . She we also wearing long, tall red boots, which Toni imagined would’ve matched perfectly with red lipstick, if Cheryl were wearing it. But no, she was still wearing the nude from that morning, and it still looked so good with the outfit. Not that Toni had had any doubts, because she was one of the two best dressed people that Toni had ever known.

But it was driving her crazy, and she only realized that she was still staring when Sweet Pea was suddenly addressing her, “Hey, Tiny, you know what I’m talking about right?”

“What?” she asked, blushing a little as she turned her head to look at her friend.

Sweet Pea rolled his eyes, repeating what he’d said before, and Toni forced herself to actively participate in the conversation as she opened her beer and took a drink.

When their dinner was ready, Kevin dragged Fangs into the kitchen to help get supplies for setting the table, and Cheryl hopped up to follow them. Toni was going to get up to help as well, but Cheryl had playfully slapped her hand and said, “No, sit,” so Toni was sitting.

Fangs brought out some plates and forks and knives, and after setting them all out, he grabbed the empty beer bottles and tossed them in the garbage. Then he returned with napkins and wine glasses. “This is all so fancy,” Betty commented, lifting an eyebrow.

“I take hosting Friendsgiving very seriously, Betty,” Kevin called from the kitchen. He came out with water glasses and a pitcher full of water, which he set on the table. “Don’t forget water, you guys, I’m not about to have a bunch of wasted people throwing up in my one bathroom just because they forgot to hydrate.”

“Not sure that’s how that works, Kev, but okay,” Jughead said with a smirk and a shake of his head.

Kevin started bringing out food as Cheryl started bringing out the collection of wines they had.

“Can I get another beer?” Sweet Pea asked, getting out of his chair and starting toward the kitchen. “I’m not much of a wine guy.”

“Uh, same?” Jughead requested, and Cheryl rolled her eyes, grabbing two beers and handing them over to Sweet Pea, who passed the second to Jughead. “Thanks, Cheryl!”

“Yeah, yeah,” she answered with a wave of her hand.

The last bottle she grabbed was the one that got Toni excited. Pinot noir really was her favorite wine to go with typical Thanksgiving dinners. As Cheryl set it on their side of the table, she sat back down at her seat and nudged Toni’s foot with hers again. Toni imitated the action, and before they knew it, they were keeping up a game of footsie underneath the table.

Wine started flowing out of bottles, so Toni popped the cork out of her pinot noir and poured herself a generous glass. “You want some?” she asked Cheryl, who nodded.

“I don’t know much about wine,” Cheryl admitted, “aside from the basics. My mother always wanted me to know the details, but she would ramble on and on while I was secretly drinking way more than she wanted me to. So I never really absorbed it all.”

Toni shrugged. “There’s so much to know, and in all honesty, if you ever need some quick knowledge about wine, google is definitely your friend. I don’t know much either, like, not the technical stuff. I just know a shit ton of names, thanks to my job of course.”

“Alright,” Kevin was saying suddenly, “before we get to dive into the food – which by the way, was made with the assistance of both Fangs and Cheryl, so shout out to them – we have to take a mandatory group selfie.”

“Oh boy,” Jughead muttered, Betty elbowing him as Kevin flashed him a pointed look.

“It’s mandatory for Friendsgiving, okay?” Kevin grabbed his phone out of his pocket, opening up his reverse camera and holding it up, angling it to try and get everyone in it as best as he could. “Toni, lean in more. Betty lean back a little, you’re blocking your girlfriend. Sweet Pea… just duck, you’re tall. Okay, okay, don’t move. Smile!” He took the picture, and as soon as he lowered the phone, everyone relaxed. “Alright, guys! Go ahead and dive in!”

“Wait,” Betty said with a frown, “we all have to go around and say what we’re thankful for.”

“No we don’t,” Sweet Pea argued with a wave of his hand, “its  _ Friendsgiving _ . It overrides the Thanks part.”

“That’s not really how it works,” Jughead said with an eyeroll.

Veronica nudged her girlfriend. “We can give thanks later, babe. And I think we’re all in agreement that we are super thankful for Kevin, Fangs and Cheryl for providing us all with this food. And we’re all thankful to have everyone in this group in our lives.” Everyone nodded in agreement, and Betty looked pleased, nodding in approval.

“Then it seems like we’re ready to eat!” Kevin exclaimed.

” _ Bon appétit _ ,” Cheryl said brightly, winking at Toni as she did and totally catching the pink haired girl off guard, her breath catching in her throat. She barely recovered in time to join the frenzy that was everyone trying to grab some of the food.

There was turkey, stuffing, salad, rolls, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, and corn and peas. The smells alone were enough to make anyone instantly starved, but considering that Toni hadn’t eaten since… well, she was realizing as she piled her plate full of food that she hadn’t really eaten since breakfast. She’d had a granola bar on her way to work after spending all morning cleaning, but that and her small breakfast was all she’d actually eaten.

Rather than mentioning it, though, Toni chose to just dig into the meal in front of her, savoring every bite as best as she could as she practically shoved it down. Luckily, she wasn’t the only one who was so eagerly devouring her food. Jughead, true to his usual self, was eating possibly faster than her, and Sweet Pea was eating pretty seriously too. The rest of the people at the table were carrying conversation as they ate.

Toni finally joined the conversation once she’d filled her plate with seconds, feeling less starved now. She also finally started sipping her wine in between bites of food, feeling completely content in this moment. Her favorite people in the world were sitting around this table, which was filled with good food and good alcohol, and Toni couldn’t think of anywhere she’d rather be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all enjoyed the update!! Comments are always welcomed and appreciated! <3  
> I haven't seen the new Riverdale episode yet (gonna watch it tonight probably with my girlfriend) but I'm so ready for the Choni!! We've been starved for content and I'm excited for any at all lol.  
> I'm wishing you all a good weekend! Thank you for being here and reading <3 I'll see you all next week! Be sure to follow me on Twitter @BrittzandTana to keep up with me, sneak peeks, early updates, and regular updates! xx


	10. Lucky Number Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The end of Friendsgiving + the weekend, and Choni's relationship is growing stongerrrr <3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey lovelies - IT'S THURSDAY! Actual update day! Fuck yeah! I didn't forget! Today's been a day though, damn. I had an exam earlier and I'm kind of exhausted asf lol, plus I got a random headache earlier that's still kinda bothering me :( Well, I guess it's not totally random, I've had a cold all week and I'm finally getting over it, so it's definitely a sinus headache from congestion, but like, it's fine. Anyway y'all aren't here to listen to me ramble, you're here for an update!! Enjoy!xx

**** The eight friends at Friendsgiving decided to play some Cards Against Humanity after their hefty meal, and there were quite a few laughs throughout, and Veronica took the win. Toni wasn’t really surprised by that, because she was pretty sure the dark haired girl knew everyone in the group the best.

After Cards, Sweet Pea turned on a movie, and he, Fangs, and Jughead took up most of Kevin’s couch to watch it as the rest of the group stayed at the table, talking about any and everything.

Toni and Cheryl had nearly finished the pinot noir as the evening began to draw to a close, although the pink haired girl was pretty sure she’d had most of it. She’d noticed Cheryl pacing herself with her drinks, and she wondered if it was because she was going out shopping. Either way, Toni hadn’t been pacing herself as much, and she only stopped when she realized that the bottle was almost empty.

It was around that same time that Cheryl and Veronica had started to clear the table, insisting that Kevin stay seated. Toni did get up and help this time, and Betty started putting leftovers away. “Hey, Jug,” Betty called from the kitchen, “wanna do dishes?”

“Sure,” Jughead agreed easily, hopping up and heading into the kitchen. They were all for pitching in it seemed, which was nice. Toni spotted her best friend on the couch and rolled her eyes.

“Sweets, you’re on wiping down the table duty, your mission begins now,” she called, and he groaned, but obeyed orders. Toni smirked, rolling her eyes as she cleared the last of the dishes from the table. Cheryl had taken charge of putting away the alcohol, and Veronica was helping Betty with leftovers.

“You guys feel free to take any leftovers―food or drinks,” Kevin told them. “I really don’t need all of it to myself.”

“In that case,” Toni said brightly, turning around to find the pinot noir and being very surprised when she realized that Cheryl was already handing it to her with a smirk. Toni took it gratefully, setting it on the counter where she wouldn’t forget it.

When the kitchen was cleaned and the dishwasher had been started, everyone went into the living room, Kevin flipping the light off first, and they all piled on the couch or on the floor to finish the movie that the guys had put on. Toni found herself sitting on the floor, leaning against the far side of the couch, next to Cheryl. Toni had found Cheryl’s hands in the redhead’s lap, and the other woman had gladly let her take hold of them. Cheryl started playing with Toni’s fingers, dancing her fingernails gently across her skin, and it made Toni’s heart feel fluttery.

Toward the end of the movie, Toni laid her head on Cheryl’s shoulder, feeling pretty sleepy. But being so close to Cheryl, their fingers twisted together and that scent of cherries, vanilla and also alcohol, ended up steering her thoughts away from how sleepy she was. Unfortunately, nothing that she wanted to do was particularly appropriate in this setting.

Instead, she twisted slightly, turning her head so that she could press a soft, fluttery kiss to Cheryl’s neck, and she felt more than heard Cheryl’s sharp intake of breath. Toni felt heat pooling in between her legs, and she tried to ignore it, knowing that this wasn’t going anywhere. Still, she pressed another kiss to Cheryl’s soft skin, a little higher this time, on the edge of her jaw. She aimed one more for Cheryl’s cheek, but Cheryl turned her head just enough that the kiss landed against her soft lips. It was a slow, gentle kiss, and it didn’t last long, but it was enough to get Toni’s heart racing even more than it already was.

She tried to settle back into her position leaning against the couch, and a little into Cheryl, to finish watching them movie, but she could hardly pay attention.

* * *

When the movie ended, it was seemingly agreed that the evening had drawn to a close. It was getting pretty late, which meant that the shoppers needed to be off to get the best deals. So everyone started grabbing their things, and Jughead grumbled about taking his chairs back. Sweet Pea offered to help him get them back, and told Toni he would be back to the apartment later. She nodded and shrugged, figuring she’d probably have passed out by that point, but she would try her best to stay up for him. He always did the same for her, and just because he wasn’t a five foot three girl didn’t mean she shouldn’t make sure he got home okay.

Everyone gave each other goodbye hugs―even though they would likely all see each other before the long weekend was up―and Toni gave Cheryl another brief kiss before they all headed out. Kevin, Fangs, Veronica, Betty, and Cheryl were the ones headed out to go shopping, and Toni, Sweet Pea, and Jughead were the ones passing on the experience. As Toni started toward the underground, her bottle of pinot noir in her hand and her jacket pulled tightly around her, she turned to Cheryl and her friends, “I better not get a phone call or a text about anything like last year happening, got it?”

“I’ll protect them,” Fangs promised, winking at her playfully.

“I’m gonna hold you to that, Fangs. See you guys. Text when you’re all home safe.”

“We will,  _ mom _ ,” Veronica insisted, rolling her eyes.

With that, they split up, and Toni started her walk and subway ride back home.

When she was standing in the train, holding one of the poles with one hand, she got a text from Cheryl.

**Bombshell – You text when you’re home too. Xx**

**TT – Of course :)**

And she did, as soon as she’d let herself back in the apartment. She put her wine in her newly cleaned out fridge and locked the apartment door, texting Cheryl, Veronica and Sweet Pea that she’d made it back. Then she went into her bathroom, running a hot shower, shedding her clothes, and stepping underneath the water.

The shower successfully made her tired, and when she dried her hair, tying it into two neat braids for the night, and changed into comfy pajamas, she was definitely ready for bed. But first, she went back into the kitchen and grabbed her pinot noir from the fridge, pouring it into a plastic cup and sitting on her couch in silence as she sipped it.

It was, at this point, about an hour since they’d all left Kevin’s apartment, so Toni wasn’t really expecting to hear from any of her friends yet. She was expecting Sweet Pea to be back soon, though, and that definitely contributed to why she was still awake, sipping wine in her pajamas.

But as she sat there, she got another text from Cheryl.

**Bombshell – Are you still up?**

**TT – I am, why? Something didn’t go wrong already, did it??**

**Bombshell – No, no, don’t worry.**

**Bombshell – I never thought I’d say this, but forty minutes into shopping and I’m bored.**

**Bombshell – Can I come over?**

Toni inhaled deeply, biting down on her lip as she replied.

**TT – Definitely xx**

Sweet Pea got back to the apartment a few minutes later. “Hey,” she greeted him as he walked in. “Got Jug’s chairs back to his place?”

“Yep. You stayed up for me?”

“Yeah,” she confirmed, “and seems like that was the right idea, because Cheryl just texted and said she’s coming over. I guess she got bored of shopping.”

“It’s after midnight,” Sweet Pea commented suspiciously. “Are you two gonna—”

“Sweets, first of all, I can’t believe you’re about to ask me that,” Toni said in surprise, “and secondly… probably not. It feels too early still, you know? We only went on our first date like, not even a full seven days ago.”

Sweet Pea nodded slowly. “Plenty of people hook up after their first date.”

“Yeah well… you know how much I care about Cheryl. I don’t want anything to go wrong. Plus, I’m kind of exhausted from today, and I don’t want to be super sleepy for my first time with Cheryl.”

Sweet Pea’s face twisted funnily. “Okay, maybe you’re right and I shouldn’t have asked you about this. It feels weird. You’re like my sister.”

“Completely agree.”

“Great, so let’s pretend I never said anything.”

“Deal.”

Sweet Pea got all ready for bed and called out a goodnight before shutting himself in his bedroom for the night. Toni finished her wine, tossing the cup and slipping into her bathroom to pee and brush her teeth. Just as she was finishing up, she heard her buzzer ringing.

She confirmed entrance without checking that it was Cheryl, because the chances that it wasn’t were slim. And sure enough, when there was a gentle knock on the door, Toni swung it open to reveal the redhead. “Hey, you,” Toni said softly, aware of how tired she sounded. “Come on in.”

“You look comfy,” Cheryl commented with a chuckle.

“And you still look ridiculously hot,” Toni tossed back. “You really got bored of shopping?”

Cheryl blushed. “Kind of. Mostly I just realized that I was missing out on spending time with you.”

“Cher, you know we can hang out whenever.”

“Whenever we’re both free, which if you haven’t noticed, isn’t enough for me,” Cheryl corrected. “But you’re clearly ready for bed. I don’t want to keep you up—"

“No,” Toni interrupted, “keep me up, please.”

Cheryl smiled softly. “Okay.”

Cheryl slipped off her boots, and Toni insisted that she change into something more comfortable. So she grabbed some sweats and a loose t-shirt from her dresser, tossing it at the redhead. Cheryl disappeared into the bathroom, and when she reentered Toni’s bedroom, where the pink haired girl was now sitting on her bed, she was not only changed into the comfier clothes, but her makeup had been removed too. “Hm, I always forget how hot you are without makeup on,” Toni commented coyly.

Cheryl rolled her eyes, but Toni didn’t miss the redness that came to her cheeks. Cheryl closed Toni’s bedroom door, flipped off the light switch, and came over to the bed, sitting next to the other woman. The room was illuminated still pretty well from the New York lights shining through the window, and their eyes adjusted quickly to the dark. “I borrowed your toothpaste again.”

“Perfectly allowed,” Toni told her with a chuckle, setting her phone on her nightstand and plugging it in.

“Did you have fun tonight?” Cheryl wondered, leaning against wall, where a headboard would’ve been if Toni had a real bedframe.

“I did. Did you?”

Cheryl nodded. “I think this was the best Thanksgiving I’ve ever had.”

“Me too,” Toni admitted.

“I’m glad you liked the pinot noir. Not gonna lie, I’d never tried it, so I just bought the most expensive one I could find.”

“It was really good,” Toni assured her. She looked at the beautiful girl next to her for a moment, taking her all in before asking, “You know why I love it with Thanksgiving?” Cheryl shook her head. “Growing up, there’s only  _ one _ Thanksgiving that I remember actually enjoying. It was my senior year. Veronica’s parents always made her stay in for Thanksgiving, but Sweet Pea and I were used to pretty much ignoring the holiday. His dad was usually working during it, or he just didn’t give a shit.

“But that year, Sweets’ aunt came into town and was staying with him. She took the couch, so I was kind of without a place for that week, but they invited me over for their Thanksgiving dinner. And it was the first time I ever remember having an  _ actual _ Thanksgiving dinner. And I was used to drinking cheap alcohol back then, at parties or whatever. But she brought pinot noir, and it was  _ so _ good, and I guess now it just reminds me of that feeling of actually getting to have a holiday for once that everyone else was so used to.”

Suddenly, surprising Toni, Cheryl leaned forward and pressed her lips to Toni’s softly. The kiss lasted only a second, and then Cheryl was wrapping Toni in a tight hug, pulling her down slightly. They laid out on the bed, Cheryl pulling the blankets over them and then wrapping her arms around Toni’s middle, resting her head on the girl’s chest. Toni wrapped her left arm around the redhead, her right hand falling to rest on Cheryl’s arm that was draped over her stomach.

Toni had been introduced to another thing she loved doing with Cheryl Blossom: cuddling.

“That’s a nice story,” Cheryl finally said. “I think I’ve heard a lot of stories about you in high school, but… I don’t really know all of the details. Not to say that you have to tell me, of course, if you prefer not to talk about it. Which, I assume is the case, considering how you don’t usually.”

Toni hummed, her left hand gently trailing over Cheryl’s back through the t-shirt material. “I don’t talk about it a lot, because I don’t feel like it defines me. Or, I don’t want it to.”

“But, TT,” Cheryl said, “it kind of does. It made you strong, it molded you into the incredible person you are today.” She pulled away slightly, propping herself up so that she could meet Toni’s eyes. “It doesn’t have to be all that defines you though. But just like my childhood affected me way more than I wish it did, yours must have too.”

Toni nodded, glancing away from those warm eyes despite herself. Cheryl resettled back into her previous position, and Toni continued the gentle movements of her hand. “When I was eight years old, my parents got back into drugs – hard ones, the stuff that’s real shitty for you. From what I’d heard, they were big druggies before I was born, but they did their best to stop so they could take care of me. I know it’s possible that they fell back into it by chance or accident, or like, could’ve been some ‘old habits die hard’ kind of shit. But in all honesty, I don’t think they cared about me very much anymore.”

Cheryl tightened her hold around Toni, as if to remind her that she was there for her, and it made Toni smile a little.

“Thankfully, it didn’t get all bad right away. I was about ten when it took a turn for the worst. I would get home and there would be strangers in our trailer, all of them getting high with my parents. They started crashing on our couch sometimes, and some of them were… scary, I guess, is the simplest way to put it. Some of them looked at me like… ugh, like they wanted to  _ do  _ things to me. And I wasn’t from a good neighborhood, so I knew all about sexual assault and those sorts of things. So I started staying out of my house as much as possible to avoid something like that happening to me. I would go home with Sweet Pea after school, and sometimes I would crash there. Got to know his dad, and he never asked me why I was staying over, which was nice. Things started being okay for a little while.

“The high school that people in our area were zoned to was closed the year before Sweet Pea and I were supposed to start there, so when we finally did start freshman year, we were rezoned for the better school across town. That’s how I met Veronica,” Toni recalled with a smile. “I really felt like that school was going to be one of my escapes, and it kind of was. I loved it―there were actual extra curriculars and stuff. But even though I met Veronica and started having a better school situation, my parents were just getting worse. And I’d basically counted them as useless for six years at this point, but…”

Toni trailed off, biting down on her lower lip. She didn’t tell this part of the story very often. “You don’t have to tell me, Toni, if you can’t or don’t want to.”

“No, no, I wanna tell you,” Toni insisted. “You should know.” She took a breath. “Basically, I went home one day right after school, something that didn’t happen very often. I needed to grab something―I don’t even remember what it was. But my parents were home when I got there, and they absolutely flipped shit at seeing me show up there. They were yelling things like… asking how I expected them to be okay with me coming and going as I pleased, telling me how ungrateful I was, how I was just a waste of space, time and energy, and so much other shit. They were high and drunk off of their asses at that point, and I didn’t know what to do. I think I just went into my room to grab whatever it was that I needed, but they just  _ kept yelling _ . And I wasn’t answering, and my dad got  _ pissed _ . He didn’t hit me―I don’t believe he really would’ve―but at the time, it sure seemed like he was getting to that point.”

“Oh, Toni…” Cheryl murmured, and Toni lightly squeezed her arm reassuringly.

“He said something along the lines of ‘Yeah, grab your shit and get out, because you aren’t welcome here anymore,’” Toni recalled, feeling hot tears in her eyes. “So instead of grabbing that one thing, I started tossing all of my things in a couple of bags―it all fit too, it wasn’t like I had a lot back then. I was  _ fourteen _ . So I left, and the first place I went was to my grandfather’s trailer. My grandfather was the only member of my family who ever really cared about me, but the problem was that my uncle―my mom’s brother―lived with him, too, and he was even more of a junkie than either of my parents. So I stayed there for a couple of weeks until he got tired of me too, and I couldn’t anymore.

“I hadn’t told Sweet Pea about what happened, and it wasn’t until I couldn’t go back to my grandfather’s trailer that I finally did. He was pissed at me for not telling him sooner, and he said I could stay with him and his dad for as long as I needed. And that was true, though we kept it from his dad for a while. I never wanted to have to explain to him what happened, and I never did, but I think he knew. And that one time I told you about, where he said I couldn’t stay with them because of Sweets and I stealing his truck, when I was allowed back, I could tell he felt bad. He knew I didn’t have a home. Sweet Pea may not have had the best dad, but through all of the shit I went through, he was one of the best adult figures in my life.

“But yeah, that’s the whole story. I stayed with Sweet Pea through most of high school, occasionally I would end up at Veronica’s for a short period of time. Sweets and Ronnie got me through it all, and I got into film and photography and applied for scholarships and all that thanks to them. So as awful as everything with my family was, I know I ended up in the right place.”

“Wow…” Cheryl breathed out. “Toni… I already knew you were strong, but seriously.” She pulled herself away again, propping herself up on her elbows. “I truly admire you. Even more so for having the strength to tell me that.”

Toni smiled softly. “Thanks, Cher. The only other people in NYC who know about all that is Ronnie and Sweets, so you’re lucky number three.”

“Thank you for telling me,” Cheryl whispered, and Toni realized that she wasn’t sure when their voices had gotten so quiet. Instead of answering, Toni leaned forward, pressing her lips to Cheryl’s gently. She poured the emotions she was feeling into the kiss, and Cheryl reciprocated just as intensely. Toni’s hand gently traced the side of Cheryl’s body, feeling her soft curves through the clothes she was wearing. When she reached Cheryl’s hip, she dipped her hand a little lower, grabbing the bottom of her thigh gently and using the grip to hoist herself up, turning them so that she was above Cheryl, who let out a small gasp of surprise.

Toni propped herself up on her left elbow, keeping her lips connected with Cheryl’s as their kiss heated. She took Cheryl’s lower lip in between her teeth gently, biting and sucking it for a good few seconds before she returned to delving her tongue into the redhead’s mouth. Her legs were stretched out above Cheryl’s, tangling under the blankets, and her right hand was resting on Cheryl’s left arm. Cheryl’s hands were in Toni’s hair―ignoring the braids and causing them to become looser and messier as she gripped it pretty firmly to keep Toni’s head where it was.

Toni eventually tore her lips from Cheryl’s, hearing the woman’s short, fast breaths as Toni placed her lips on the side of her jaw, sucking a small kiss there before moving lower, down to Cheryl’s neck. She heard Cheryl sigh contently as Toni pressed a soft kiss there first, but when she then brought in her tongue and teeth, Cheryl let out a moan. One of her hands dug its nails into Toni’s scalp, and then other drifted down Toni’s back.

The sound escaping Cheryl’s lips started a fire between Toni’s thighs, and she groaned as she bit down on Cheryl’s pulse point, soothing it with her tongue and lips immediately after. “Toni,” Cheryl murmured.

“Mmhmm?” Toni answered, pulling up and away from the beautiful girl underneath her. Cheryl’s eyes were so much darker than normal. She searched Cheryl’s gaze curiously for a few moments, and then the redhead just shook her head, tugging Toni down to connect their lips in a deep, slow kiss.

When the kiss ended, Cheryl had gently tugged Toni down next to her, and they wrapped up together under the blankets, both of their eyelids heavy by this point, despite their arousal. They both knew that this wasn’t the time for this to go further.

“It’s okay if I sleep here, right?”

“I would be really disappointed if you left right now,” Toni murmured in response, tightening her hold on the woman. “It’s more than okay for you to sleep here.”

“Good, just checking.”

They laid in silence for a few moments, but it was clear by both of their breathing that neither of them had fallen asleep. Finally, Toni let out a long breath and said, “Hey, Cher?”

“Yeah, TT?”

“Thank you. For listening to me talk about all that heavy stuff, and for being here, and just for everything.”

“Of course, TT.”

“Goodnight, Cheryl.”

“Goodnight, Toni.”

* * *

Toni woke up the next morning to… nothing, really. There was no sound, no movement, nothing. There was just the feeling of waking up wrapped up in Cheryl and her comforter. As she laid there, absorbing the feeling, she realized that Cheryl’s breathing was not as even as it should’ve been if she were sleeping. Furrowing her eyebrows, Toni murmured, “Cheryl? Are you awake?”

“Mmhmm,” Cheryl hummed in response. “But I don’t have anywhere to be, and neither do you yet, so we’re not moving.”

Toni felt a smile breaking onto her face. “Oh really?”

“Not yet anyway,” Cheryl clarified. “Your bed is comfy, and you’re even comfier.”

“How long have you been awake, Red?”

“Twenty minutes, maybe half an hour,” Cheryl admitted, shifting herself so that she could look at Toni. “We’ve already established that I’m a much earlier riser than you are.”

“You’re right, we did do that.”

Cheryl chuckled, burying her face in Toni’s neck. “I’m really glad I came over last night instead of staying out shopping.”

“Yeah, me too,” Toni agreed, rubbing her hand over Cheryl’s back softly. “Kinda sucks though. Since you’re  _ here _ , I don’t have a good morning text to look forward to.”

“Oh I’m sorry,” Cheryl said, pulling away from Toni a little to give her a pointed look, “would you rather I leave and send you a good morning  _ text _ , or can you deal with one day without one?”

Toni laughed at the Cheryl’s attempt to glare at her, pulling her back toward her. “I think I’ll deal just fine. But they have become my favorite part of the morning. But if you tell Sweets or Veronica that, we’ll have a problem.”

“You don’t want them to know that you’re secretly a sap?” Cheryl murmured, wrapping her arms tighter around Toni.

“Yeah, exactly.”

Suddenly there was an abrupt knock on Toni’s door, surprising the pink haired girl. “What?” she called, expecting Sweet Pea to reply with something important, because she couldn’t think of any reason he’d be attempting to get her attention this early. She wasn’t exactly sure what time it was, but she knew it couldn’t be later than about nine-thirty, if even that. There wasn’t too much light leaking in through her window yet.

But the reply was not from Sweet Pea, instead, Veronica’s voice called out, “I’m coming in!”

“Wait, V—” Toni argued, but the door swung open and Cheryl groaned, pulling away from Toni to pull the blanket over her head to block out the bright light from the hallway.

“Oh―shit,” Veronica said, “I didn’t realize―um, sorry, guys, I thought—”

“Dude,” Toni muttered, “what are you doing here?”

“Did you guys like―wait, never mind, I don’t want to know. Wait, actually I do, did you—”

“ _ Veronica _ ,” Toni huffed out, “how did you even get in here?”

“Sweet Pea let me in,” she answered obviously, rolling her eyes. “You weren’t answering your phone, so I figured you were still asleep. I just… didn’t realize Cheryl was here.”

Cheryl pulled the blanket off of her, and she rubbed her hand over her face, sitting up a little. “It’s fine, we were already awake anyway,” the redhead said on their behalf, though her cheeks were tinged pink, “and to answer your half question,  _ no _ .”

Veronica nodded slowly. “Okay. Okay, yeah, makes sense. Alright. Cool, so! The reason I’m here!”

“Better be a good one,” Toni muttered, and she suddenly found herself scooting closer to Cheryl as Veronica hopped onto the end of the bed.

“Does she do this a lot?” Cheryl murmured, and Toni let out a chuckle, nodding as Veronica started digging through a bag that Toni hadn’t even realized she was carrying.

“So,” Veronica said, “Betty and I went back to her place at around seven in the morning, took a power nap for a little while, ate some food, and now I’m here. Because I got you something.”

Toni snickered. “Wait, wait, I’m pretty sure I have the literal text receipts of you saying that you weren’t going to buy me anything.”

“Well, I’m a good friend, you bitch, so I did anyway,” Veronica huffed out. “But keep that up, Tiny, and you’re not getting it.”

“Alright, fine. I’m not opposed to receiving gifts, so.”

Veronica pulled a shoebox out of the Black Friday haul bag, setting it on the bed and nodding to it. Toni lifted an eyebrow, opening the box to reveal the purple and black leather, slightly floral patterned heeled boots inside. They looked expensive, but Toni didn’t ask, because she knew that her friend had gotten them with a Black Friday discount, and she also knew that Veronica would insist that she not worry about it. “You like them?”

“They’re awesome,” Toni answered in all honesty, “damn, yeah, I love them.”

“Yay! Success!” Veronica exclaimed, clapping happily. She looked to Cheryl, who had fully sat up now, like Toni, and was pulling her hair up into a messy bun. “We actually got you something too, Cher, but I didn’t know you’d be here, so it’s still at Betty’s apartment. I’ll bring it back to the dorms later today.”

“Okay,” Cheryl said with a smile, “thank you.”

“Yeah, of course! So! You guys up for a double breakfast date? Betty and I definitely did not eat enough, and since you guys are already both here and up, it’s as good a time as ever!”

Toni looked to the redhead curiously, and Cheryl nodded. “Yeah, okay.”

“Sure,” Toni agreed, and Veronica grinned.

“Cool! Well, I’ll wait in the living room then, and I’ll text Betty to head over here, and we can go somewhere nearby so we don’t take up the whole morning. I know you work forever later, T.”

“Yeah,” Toni confirmed, nodding, “alright, V, we’ll be out as soon as we’re ready to go.”

Veronica nodded, leaving the bedroom and closing the door behind her. As soon as she was gone, Cheryl groaned, flopping over to sling her arm over Toni. “I’ve never wanted to just say in bed more than right now―and that’s coming from me, the most morning person of them all.”

“You’re cute when you’re embarrassed, by the way,” Toni said with a smirk.

Cheryl pulled away, a look of disgust on her face. “Um, when was I embarrassed?”

“You were embarrassed at being caught cuddling in bed with me,” Toni insisted, poking at Cheryl playfully. “You were blushing, and you were talking  _ way _ less than normal. Sure signs of embarrassment.”

“Okay, maybe a  _ little _ . But I’m not embarrassed to have been cuddling with you. It’s just because she thought we’d… you know.”

“Had sex?” Toni asked with a little laugh as Cheryl blushed again. “Mmhmm. Cute, like I said.” She leaned toward Cheryl and pressed a soft kiss to her reddened cheek. “We better get up and get ready for this double breakfast date, huh?”

“I guess so. Can I borrow clothes?”

“Of course.”

* * *

Toni’s ten hour Friday shift was hell, because the bar was swamped, and her coworkers were working regular shifts, which meant that someone came in at six, relieving the other one as she packed up and slipped out, but Toni would be staying until midnight.

Things didn’t get much better until their third person came in at ten―he would be helping them deal with the late rushes, and then would help the other guy close. That was the one thing that was nice about the ten hour shift Toni was doing, she didn’t have to close.

And finally, when midnight came, she pulled on her jacket, grabbed her bag and her phone, and took off for her apartment. Her feet hurt from standing for so long, and the walk didn’t help. She barely had motivation to shower and eat something before she collapsed into her bed, inhaling deeply and realizing that her pillows still smelled like Cheryl.

It reminded her to text her before she fell asleep.

**TT – Made it home, I’m glad I don’t do shifts like this regularly, my feet hurt so bad. Are we still doing something tomorrow?**

**Bombshell – I’m glad you’re home!!! Sorry your feet hurt :(**

**Bombshell – I’m so, so sorry TT, but I have to cancel tomorrow. One of my professors emailed today and switched some deadlines, and now I have something due Monday that I thought was going to be due Wednesday, and I haven’t started it yet. So I’m going to meet up with some of the people in my class and get it done tomorrow at lunch.**

**TT – That’s okay, school def comes first**

**Bombshell – We can do Sunday?**

**TT – Yeah, of course! I work 6p-11p on Sunday so definitely good to hang out beforehand**

**Bombshell – Okay, Sunday it is then! Sorry again, TT. Get some sleep, ok?**

**TT – Definitely will do that haha. Goodnight, gorgeous**

**Bombshell – Goodnight!**

* * *

Saturday was only slightly less rough than Friday, full of different pros and cons. For one, Toni didn’t get to start her day waking up in the same bed as Cheryl, which was an immediate loss. But she did have more time to chill before going into work, so she made sure to get adequate amounts of food in her body, and she watched a couple of movies on Netflix. When she finally did go into work, she felt like she’d mostly recovered from the day before.

When she got there at five, Hanna was there, and she insisted that the pink haired girl needed a day off. Toni told her that’s what school days were for, but Hanna shook her head. Toni got a weekend day off every other weekend or so, so she wasn’t too worried about overworking herself. The money was enough motivation for her to suck it up.

The seven hour shift went by pretty quickly, thanks to all of their Saturday patrons, a lot of whom were regulars. Toni heard some more Thanksgiving sob stories, and a few people asked her for advice of some sorts. Toni spewed whatever thoughts came to her mind in response, and most people seemed satisfied by them.

When she got off at midnight and started her walk home, she immediately texted Cheryl.

**TT – Just got off, starting the much awaited trek home. I thought I’d given my feet enough rest earlier today, but halfway through my shift they started killing me again. You’d think I’d be used to this by now dammit.**

There was no reply, which Toni thought was kind of weird.

She didn’t get a reply during her whole walk home, and she wondered if maybe Cheryl was still working on her homework, or if she’d maybe been so tired from working that she’d passed out already. Assuming that it was one of those two things, Toni shrugged it off as she unlocked her apartment door and slipped in.

Immediately, her gaze fell onto the couch, where a certain redhead was sitting, her gaze jumping from the phone in her lap up to where Toni was, a smile appearing on her face. “Cheryl, what are you doing here?” Toni asked in surprise, though she was sure the smile on her own face revealed exactly how she felt about Cheryl being here.

“I felt bad about canceling today,” Cheryl answered, jumping up from the couch. That’s when Toni realized that she was wearing a pajama-like outfit: shorts and a tank top. Toni did her best to not stare at the exposed, smooth, pale legs. “And I wanted to see you. I texted Sweet Pea, he said he thought surprising you was a good idea. Sorry I ignored your text.”

“You do not have to apologize,” Toni insisted, setting her phone and bag down on the kitchen counter before approaching Cheryl and wrapping her leather clad arms around the beautiful woman. “I’m glad you’re here. I’ve started missing you like, unreasonable amounts.”

Cheryl laughed sweetly, her arms resting on Toni’s shoulders and wrapping behind her neck, and Toni pressed closer, bringing their lips together softly. She hummed against Cheryl’s ridiculously soft lips, unable to resist taking that bottom one in between her teeth gently. It heated their kiss, Toni’s hands falling from Cheryl’s lower back down to her ass, cupping it deliciously and squeezing. She felt Cheryl’s body react, her thighs pressing together as a moan came from her throat, dying in the passion of their kiss.

Toni had yet to fully discover how satisfying Cheryl’s ass was, but now that her hands were there, she never wanted to let go.

But they broke their embrace after a few minutes of standing, making out, and Toni feeling up Cheryl’s ass. Their foreheads stayed pressed together.

“Can I stay over?” Cheryl asked.

“There’s no way you thought you’d come over at midnight and not stay over, right?”

Cheryl laughed. “I brought an overnight bag, but I… didn’t want to be presumptuous. This time I’ll be able to use my own toothpaste, and an actual toothbrush.”

“Cool,” Toni murmured, bringing their lips together for one little chaste kiss, before fully pulling away from the redhead. “You wanna use the bathroom first then, Bombshell?”

Cheryl did, and once she was done, Toni took her change of clothes―her typical tank and sweatpants―with her into the bathroom and wiped her face clean of makeup. She decided on showering in the morning, but wrapped her hair into two braids like she did most nights. Then she brushed her teeth and changed into her pajamas, and finally she could go back into her bedroom and join Cheryl.

The redhead was already seated on her side of the bed―the same side she’d slept on Thursday, and also the side she’d slept on every time Toni had taken the floor. Toni had already plugged her phone in and left it on her nightstand, so she just flipped off her light and went over to her bed as her eyes adjusted to the darkness.

“I’m going to be honest,” Cheryl said softly as she set her phone aside on the nightstand, “I had trouble sleeping last night. Sleeping curled up with you was  _ so _ easy. And my bed in the dorm is so small and cold, and it’s biggest flaw last night was that you weren’t there.”

Toni smiled at Cheryl. “Well, you’re here now, so get over here and cuddle with me.”

“Wow, the cute badass secretly loves cuddling,” Cheryl murmured as they slipped under the blankets and then intertwined their bodies.

“It’s not a secret, you’re simply only just now learning about it,” Toni teased. “Plus, even if I hated cuddling, I’m sure I’d still love cuddling with you.”

“Wow, such a sappy thing to say, TT. Your badass title might be slipping.”

“Uh no, that’s impossible.”

They were quiet for a few moments, and then Cheryl whispered, “Hey, TT?”

“Yeah?”

“Are you working next Friday?”

“No, I shouldn’t be. Why?”

Cheryl took in a shaky breath. “Veronica and I got invited to a frat party. She really wants me to go, but…”

“You don’t want to?”

“No, I do, I just…” Cheryl took in another breath, and Toni tightened her hold on her, trying to reassure her that it was okay. “I haven’t been to a party since… what happened. Except the one time the next weekend, before I came to the bar drunk? But the  _ main _ reason I was so drunk that night, yes I was lonely and yes I missed you, but I was  _ scared _ too, TT. I kept all my drinks in my sight and I didn’t let anyone give me anything at all, but I kept drinking because I thought it would calm me down. I didn’t  _ want _ what happened on Halloween to affect me and my ability to let loose and have fun, so instead I overdid it, a lot. But I can’t go back to one of those parties yet, not without you. I need my badass TT with me.”

Toni felt her heart rate picking up at that last line, and since Cheryl’s head was on her chest, she knew that she would notice it as well. But Cheryl said nothing about it, just pulling up slightly to turn and make eye contact with Toni.

“If you don’t want to go, we can do something else. But if you don’t mind going, I’d like to. I like partying with you, Toni, I like drinking with you and dancing with you.”

“Yeah, of course I’ll go with you, Cher,” Toni agreed, and Cheryl surprised her by leaning forward and pressing their lips together for a moment.

“Thank you.”

“Yeah. And Cher, you  _ know _ you can always talk to me about how you’re feeling about anything, especially if it has to do with Halloween. I want you to be okay.”

“I am okay,” Cheryl promised her, resting her head back on Toni’s chest. “Just… not when I’m at a party alone. And I know that Veronica’s going to be there, but it’s not the same, and I don’t expect her to stay with me the  _ whole  _ time.”

“Well, you don’t have to worry about it now, because I’ll be there with you,” Toni promised. “And for the record, I like partying and dancing with you too, Cher. You just about killed me when we went clubbing with Delta Gamma Zeta. We were like, one dancing level away from dirty dancing with each other and I was  _ dying _ .”

Cheryl giggled, a genuine little giggle that made Toni’s heart swell. “So was I, TT.”

Silence settled between them, and Toni felt herself starting to drift off. Humming to keep herself awake for a moment longer, she carefully shifted their position so that Cheryl wasn’t laying on her, but they were tangled together at the same level, their faces close. “Goodnight, Cher.”

“Night, TT.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm such a slut for Toni and Cheryl opening up to each other while cuddling, what about y'all?  
> Thank you all so much for your comments, I've been trying to remember to reply to them at least once a week, but I'm sorry to those who I forget to reply to and the ones who I reply to like a billion years late lol. I've had lots of tests and things to study for, and other things going on, and tbh I haven't been logging into Ao3 very much except to update. I am so fucking ready for Thanksgiving break. Two weeks left. (and I get to road trip with my girlfriend during it, I'm excited eeeee <3)  
> I appreciate you all so much for taking time to read this!! I know once a week updates is slower than lots of other Choni stories on here updates, so I very much appreciate your patience <3 Since I post early updates and sneak peeks (check out my Twitter @BrittzandTana), it's just hard to update more often than that. I could do twice a week, but I've had a hard enough time trying to remember to update once a week oof. So again, thank you all for being patient <3  
> We've got five more chapters of this!! I'll see you all next Thursday!! xx


	11. Say That Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cheryl and Toni's very eventful last day of Thanksgiving break.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey hello hi! It's Thursday, and guess who almost forgot that it was also update day! That's right, this girl lol. Honestly shoutout to @cher_blossoms on Twitter because I had a test today and kept thinking it was Wednesday for some reason and I've been so out of it, and they messaged me asking if I was updating today, so thanks to them this update is on time haha.  
> This is a big deal update so get hyped! Enjoy lovelies!! xx

**** Toni woke up Sunday morning to an empty bed, and a frown immediately appeared on her face. She hadn’t even opened her eyes yet, but there was no soft embrace around her, and as she reached out one arm, she confirmed that the other side of the bed was empty. Groaning, she opened her eyes and looked around her room—Cheryl was nowhere to be seen.  _ But _ , her bedroom door was ajar, and as her senses returned to her upon waking, she became aware of the sound of water running in the bathroom. Relaxing, she rubbed her eyes, and a yawn escaped her mouth.

A few moments later, the water stopped, and then Cheryl slowly pushed open the bedroom door. “You’re awake,” she said in surprise, closing the door behind her.

“Mmhmm, come back to bed,” Toni whined, and Cheryl chuckled, abiding Toni’s request and climbing into her spot on the bed, leaning over to press a kiss to Toni’s cheek.

“Good morning.” Cheryl’s voice was chipper and sweet, and it was very easy to tell how much of a morning person she was. Toni hummed contently, rolling over and wrapping her arms around the redhead’s waist as she ended up on top of her, snuggling into her front, her head resting on her sternum. She could feel Cheryl’s beautifully round breasts underneath her, and they rose and fell as Cheryl laughed at her. “It’s like almost ten, you know?”

“Shit really?” Toni muttered in surprise, though she didn’t move from her new position.

Cheryl’s hands settled on Toni’s back, her fingers tracing invisible shapes over her shirt. “Yeah. I’ve been up for a little while, but mostly stayed in bed until I just really had to pee. You’re a bad influence on my usual morning routine, TT.”

“Well same, I’m hardly ever in bed till  _ ten _ , but you’re just so comfy,” Toni grumbled, as if it were really a bad thing.

“Sweet Pea is up already too,” Cheryl continued, “and he’s making eggs and toast. I’m starting to think that’s all that either of you know how to make.”

“You’re pretty much correct,” Toni admitted, letting out a breath and fully relaxing into her position. She figured she wasn’t fully crushing Cheryl, since she hadn’t complained about Toni’s position. “I can make boxed macaroni, though.”

Cheryl laughed at that, her chest bouncing again and making Toni smile. “That hardly counts, Cha-Cha.”

“We can agree to disagree,” Toni murmured.

“Hey so,” Cheryl started, piquing Toni’s interest by the slight hesitation in her voice, “if you want, when you finally decide to get up, I brought some self-care gear, which I felt like might help since you’ve been working so much. Like, face masks  _ and _ some Epsom salt for your feet.”

Toni lifted her head, her expression bright as she looked at Cheryl’s face. “You did?”

“Mmhmm. You might not be getting the full five day weekend to relax, so I figured I’d try and help you get one real day of relaxation.”

“You’re so sweet,” Toni murmured, propping herself up suddenly and scooting up to press a kiss to the corner of Cheryl’s lips. “That sounds so nice, Cher.”

There was a knock on her door all of the sudden. “Breakfast is ready, you two,” Sweet Pea called, and Cheryl suddenly poked Toni’s side, causing the girl to squeak.

“Get off me, I wanna eat,” Cheryl teased, and Toni rolled her eyes, moving off of the girl.

“I’m gonna use the bathroom and then I’ll come eat too.”

When Toni went into the kitchen to grab her serving of breakfast, Cheryl and Sweet Pea were seated at the bar, talking. Toni smiled to herself. She really liked that Cheryl seemed to get along with Sweet Pea so well, and she thought back to when she’d been pretending to sleep on Cheryl’s lap when Sweet Pea had gotten home. Her smile widened as she walked around the bar and into the kitchen to grab her breakfast.

“Pretty good sleep this morning, huh Toni?” Sweet Pea teased.

“I was comfortable,” Toni huffed out. “Plus, work tired me out. And I’m awake now, aren’t I?”

She scooped some eggs onto a plate and grabbed the last piece of toast, buttering it as Cheryl said, in Toni’s defense, “She’s had a busy few days.”

“Yeah, Sweets,” Toni agreed pointedly, taking a bite of her toast as she stood facing them, eating her food. It was kind of unfortunate only having two barstools and no dining table in times like this. But usually Sweet Pea was the one who stood, so she didn’t complain.

“Yeah, yeah,” Sweet Pea gave in, waving his hand as he took another bite of his eggs. His food was almost gone already.

“You work today, Sweets?” Toni wondered.

“Yeah, I’ve gotta leave soon, work at eleven,” he answered with a nod. “You’re working what, six to eleven?”

“Yep. Short shift again, which is much needed. Cheryl and I are going to have a DIY spa day before then.”

“Wow, I’m sad to be missing that,” Sweet Pea said sarcastically with a playful eyeroll.

Cheryl scoffed. “Well you weren’t invited  _ anyway _ .”

“Harsh,” Sweet Pea said in mock hurt, putting his hand on his chest and looking at Cheryl with a frown.

“Your sarcasm is not welcome,” Cheryl said with a sniff, “self-care is important.”

“I know, I know,” Sweet Pea gave in. He looked to Toni and said teasingly, “This one’s gonna kill me, Tiny. Living with you is easy, you’re like the sister I never had, but with her here all the time?”

Cheryl narrowed her eyes, though her lips turning up a little told Toni and Sweet Pea that she recognized the teasing. She playfully smacked Sweet Pea on the arm. “I’ll remember that,” she said to him.

“You can’t bully Cheryl,” Toni told her roommate, “I won’t allow it.”

“Well tell her she can’t bully me,” Sweet Pea tossed back.

Toni shrugged. “I don’t make the rules.”

“You just made a rule.”

“Yeah, but I didn’t make the rules that said which rules I’m allowed to make,” Toni argued, and Cheryl was grinning now at the silliness of the back and forth.

“You’re ridiculous, Tiny.”

“And you’re gonna be late to work if you don’t change out of your pajamas soon,” Toni countered, taking another bite of her breakfast, which was almost gone. Cheryl and Sweet Pea’s plates were both empty by now.

“Now you’re just trying to get rid of me so you can be alone with Cheryl.”

Toni smiled. “Guilty.”

Sweet Pea smirked and shook his head, grabbing his and Cheryl’s plates and coming into the kitchen to rinse them and slide them into the dishwasher. “Better go change and get ready to go then.”

“Thanks for breakfast, Sweets,” Toni said, flashing him a wide smile.

“Yeah, thank you,” Cheryl agreed, and he smiled at both of them.

“No problem.”

He disappeared into his room, and Toni took the last bite of her eggs. “I love seeing you two talk to each other,” Cheryl admitted. “It really is like you guys are siblings.”

Toni smiled. “I love him like a brother. I mean, I’ve literally known him my whole life, he basically is my brother. I’d never had that sort of closeness with anyone before. And I pretty much have it with V now, but it’s still different.”

“There’s nothing like it,” Cheryl agreed, and Toni could read a bit of sadness in her expression, and she knew she was thinking about Jason.

Toni silently rinsed her plate and put it in the dishwasher as well, trying to think of what exactly to say to address Cheryl’s thoughts. She came around to sit next to the beautiful girl, who turned to face her as she did. “You two were really close, huh?”

Cheryl nodded without hesitation, confirming what Toni had assumed she’d been thinking. “It’s hard not to be when you’re twins. We did everything together. My Nana used to pick out our outfits for us and sometimes she would get confused and dress us in each other’s clothes—she’s half blind—and we would laugh and pretend to be each other until she realized that my hair was  _ way _ too long to be JJ’s.”

When Cheryl said  _ JJ _ , Toni blinked in surprise and something clicked in her head. JJ, like TT. “JJ is a cute nickname.”

Cheryl smiled. “Yeah, I was the only one who called him that. One time a girl he started dating called him that and I got  _ so mad _ . Which was probably unreasonable, but it felt like something between him and I, you know? Something special. And he called me Cherry,” she admitted. “I wouldn’t have let anyone else call me that, but it wasn’t like there  _ was _ anyone who would’ve wanted to. Jason was always the popular one. He had  _ so many _ friends. He was on the football team, and I was a cheerleader—the head cheerleader—but it wasn’t the same. We would throw parties when our parents were gone, and I would plan and organize so much of it, but people only came when JJ asked them. But he always tried to keep me included, tried to get people to see a better side of me, which was nice of him, but also in vain.”

Toni was kind of surprised at the sudden admission, but she wasn’t opposed to hearing it. She wanted to know more about Cheryl—to know what made her into the incredible person she was today.

“I wasn’t a good person in high school, TT. I was closed off, angry, pretentious. I blame my mother for it mostly—she loved JJ more than she ever loved me,  _ if _ she did love me. So did my father. But I could’ve been better, should’ve been. When he died, Toni, I realized how alone I was. Nobody loved me like he loved me, nobody  _ ever _ cared whether I was okay except for him. We were twins, but he didn’t  _ have _ to be a good brother to me just because we were forced to do everything together as kids. But he was the best brother, and I lost him, and all I wanted was to feel connection with someone again. So I tried so hard when I started at NYU to be a better person, but it was hard, because not only was I used to being such a bitch, but I was so heartbroken over losing my brother.

“But thankfully, there were people here who gave me a chance—namely Veronica and, by extension, you. I really owe Veronica for being there for me. I think she always knew I was hurting that semester, but she never asked why, and she just stuck to my side during rush and when we went to all the Delta Gamma Zeta events and all those damn parties,” Cheryl said with a laugh and a shake of her head.

Toni reached out for Cheryl’s hands, grabbing them with her own. “You’re seriously sensational, Cheryl, with everything you’ve been through, you’re still able to stand so strongly. And I hope you know that you are so far from being a bad person, no matter what you were like in high school. Jason would be proud of you.”

Cheryl smiled sweetly. “JJ would’ve liked you,” she said softly. “He always told me that I didn’t deserve the friendship of anyone at school if  _ they _ didn’t  _ want _ to try and get past my walls. And you’ve always wanted to know me, so he would’ve said something like ‘go get her, Cherry.’”

“How could I not want to get to know you?” Toni asked with a chuckle. “You’re like, the most intriguing person I’ve ever met.”

Sweet Pea’s door opened suddenly, and Toni and Cheryl both turned to look at him, dressed in his waiter uniform. “See you guys, have a nice  _ DIY spa day _ ,” he said with a chuckle.

“We will,” Cheryl said brightly.

“See you later, Sweets.”

He gave them a wave and slipped out of the apartment. Toni look back at Cheryl, who had a slight blush on her cheeks. “Sorry for going all deep and dark past on you all the sudden.”

“Don’t apologize, Cher,” Toni insisted. “I’m glad you feel comfortable enough to tell me that stuff, and I like learning more about you. Especially about you and your brother. I can tell how much he meant to you.”

Cheryl let out a breath. “I don’t deserve you, TT.”

“Sure you do, Cheryl,” Toni argued, her heart aching at the words Cheryl had just uttered. “You  _ do _ ,” she repeated, “okay?”

Cheryl searched Toni’s eyes with those warm, vulnerable ones, and then she nodded slowly. “Okay,” she said quietly.

Toni gently tugged on the redhead’s hand and murmured, “C’mere.” Cheryl stood up, standing directly in front of Toni as the smaller girl wrapped her arms around the girl’s waist. “I’ve told you this before, Cher, but I really admire you so much. You’re so dedicated and passionate and caring and beautiful. Okay?”

Cheryl rested her hands on Toni’s shoulders, leaning forward and pressing her lips softly to Toni’s. Toni pulled her closer, scooting to the edge of the barstool and tilting her head up to better access Cheryl’s lips. After a few seconds like that, they pulled apart again. “You know you’re one of the first people to ever call me that.”

“What?” Toni wondered, furrowing her eyebrows.

“Beautiful,” Cheryl admitted quietly. “People use all sorts of other words, but not that one. Except you, you’ve used it about me quite a lot now.”

“Because you’re like, the most beautiful girl I’ve ever lain my eyes on,” Toni insisted, pushing some of Cheryl’s hair behind her ears. “And I’ve been sure of that for like, the whole past year.”

Cheryl padded her fingertips across Toni’s exposed upper back, and the pink haired girl shivered. Cheryl let out a long breath, her eyelashes batting softly. “God, TT. You’re going to be the death of me.”

Toni chuckled, biting down on her lower lip. “So… how about that DIY spa stuff now?”

* * *

Half an hour later found Toni and Cheryl seated side by side on the couch, their feet resting in little aluminum tins—which were definitely meant for cooking—that were filled with Epsom salt water. Cheryl insisted that it was good for the skin, and she’d added some drops of lavender into the water. Toni had missed the exact explanation for that, but she didn’t really care.

As they sat with their feet soaking, they both opened little packets of a peel off, detoxifying, charcoal mask. “How does this work?” Toni asked in confusion.

“So you rub it all over your face as evenly as you can, and after about twenty minutes, it dries completely so that you can peel it off. If you ask me, it’s the easiest kind of face mask,” Cheryl answered. “See, so you just squeeze it into your palm like this.” The black goo filled the woman’s pale palm slowly from the little packet. “And then you rub it everywhere.”

She gently massaged the mask across her skin, over the bridge of her nose and between her eyebrows carefully. As she finished up, Toni hesitantly opened her packet, squeezing it to get all the cold, goop out of it. Once her palm was filled, she imitated Cheryl’s motions, covering her face in it. When she finished, she looked over at the redhead and let out a little laugh. “Oh my god, I probably look ridiculous.”

“Are you saying that  _ I _ look ridiculous?”

“Of course not,” Toni insisted, though she was smirking.

“Yeah, keep smirking, TT. When it starts to dry you won’t even able to move those cute little lips of yours.” Cheryl grabbed a pack of little wet wipes, opening it carefully with her sticky hands, and pulling one out to pass to Toni, and one for herself. They quickly cleaned off their hands, and Toni let out a breath, falling back against the couch cushion.

“This is nice,” she said peacefully, though the face mask was slightly burning her skin.

“I’m going to take you for real pedicures sometime,” Cheryl stated, before confidence dropped out of her voice for a moment and she added, “if you want to, that is.”

“I’ve never had one,” Toni admitted, and Cheryl looked shocked for only a moment. “I’d be down to try one, though.”

“It’s so relaxing. We’ll go sometime. Maybe after the semester to celebrate finishing finals,” Cheryl suggested. “I know  _ I’ll _ need some sort of reward after that.”

Toni chuckled. “I’m down.”

“Excellent.” Cheryl grabbed the little lavender essential oil dropper she’d used to put lavender in their foot water, but this time, she shook some out on her hands, rubbing them together slightly and then rubbing it into the back of her neck. “It’s really calming, especially rubbed onto sore or tense areas,” she explained to Toni, who was watching her curiously. “Are your shoulders tense, TT?”

“You just want an excuse to touch me, Blossom,” Toni asserted, and she saw the blush appear on Cheryl’s cheeks. But before the redhead could say anything else, Toni was sweeping her messy braids over her right shoulder, doing her best to turn despite her feet sitting in the Epsom salt water. “You tell me if they’re tense.”

Saying nothing, Cheryl gently grabbed the straps of Toni’s tank top and gently pulled them off of her shoulders. The tank top was tight enough around Toni’s breasts that it stayed set where it belonged, but she still bit down her lip as she felt Cheryl move the straps. She then glanced over her shoulder, seeing Cheryl drop a few more drops of the oil in her hands before pressing them against Toni’s shoulders. Toni faced forward, letting her eyes flicker closed as she felt Cheryl massaging her back gently. The essential oil definitely did smell strongly of lavender, but it was a scent that Toni didn’t mind, and she did feel it calming her. Though, that may have just been from the relaxing feeling of Cheryl rubbing out the small knots in her upper back. Plus, the stinging feeling of the face mask had stopped, and she could feel it drying and tightening on her skin. “Damn, Cher,” she murmured, “that feels really good.”

“You’re definitely tense,” Cheryl replied softly, rubbing her thumbs into Toni’s back strongly. Suddenly, Toni felt soft lips pressing a fluttery kiss to the nape of her neck, and she sighed involuntarily. “But not too bad,” the follow up whisper came.

Toni would’ve turned around, straddled the redhead, and suck her bottom lip until it was swollen right in that moment, but as it seemed, she was inhibited, thanks to her feet soaking in the water and the face mask solidifying. “Man, I can think of some other relaxing things that we could be doing right now, too…”

“You don’t work till six, and it’s barely even noon,” Cheryl pointed out. “We have plenty of time for more fun, TT.”

“And you said  _ I’m _ going to be the death of  _ you _ .”

Cheryl’s hands fell away form Toni’s shoulders, so the pink haired girl turned back toward her as she pulled her tank top straps back up. The redhead was just smirking at her, and before Toni could say anything about it, her phone buzzed annoyingly next to her. Huffing, she grabbed and checked the device.

**V-Ronnie – Is Cheryl at yours?**

**Tiny Toni – Yes, why?**

**V-Ronnie – Um, so the guy from Halloween, I recognized him coming into the dorms because of the pic you sent me, and like I’ve seen him around ofc. Anyway, he came into the dorms with an envelope, and I intercepted him and asked what he was doing, and he said he was looking for Cheryl, and so I lied and said I was her roommate, and promised to deliver the letter. And uh, I opened it because I was worried about what it might be.**

**Tiny Toni – And what was it?**

**V-Ronnie – A check for a shit ton of money with a note that just says “keep quiet or it bounces.”**

“Holy shit,” Toni muttered.

“What’s wrong?” Cheryl wondered.

“Warning, this will break our peaceful reverie,” Toni admitted, passing her phone over to Cheryl.

“Oh my god,” Cheryl muttered. “He must know that I went to NYU about what happened.”

Toni didn’t know what to say or do in this situation, but she took her phone back as the redhead passed it to her. “What… what do you think you’re wanting to do?”

Cheryl sighed. “I’m going to go to NYU with the note and the check and use it to support what I’ve already explained. And then they can finally talk to you—if they really need more evidence. And then I can get that piece of shit exiled from campus.” Toni bit on her lower lip as she smiled. “What?”

Toni hummed, lifting an eyebrow. “It’s hot when you get all boss ass bitch.”

“Tell me something I don’t know, Cha-Cha,” Cheryl teased, though Toni saw the blush on her cheeks. It was getting ridiculously easy to get Cheryl to blush, and no matter what her verbal response was, Toni could always confirm that the girl was indeed affected by the compliment.

**Tiny Toni – Thanks for letting me know, I told Cher. She says she’ll bring the note and the check to the offices at NYU to back up what she already said.**

**V-Ronnie – Ok cool. There’s no way I’m leaving this sort of money with her roommate, so let her know that I’ll have it in my room for her when she’s back.**

**Tiny Toni – Okay V, thank you! I’ll see you tomorrow.**

**V-Ronnie – No problem :)**

“Ronnie said she’ll have the envelope at her dorm, so you can get it from her when you’re back.”

Cheryl nodded, smiling. “Excellent. Now, I believe a foot scrub is in order.”

“A what now?”

* * *

Another half hour went by, during which time the two of them peeled off their face masks, scrubbed their feet with some weird material that Cheryl had produced from her overnight bag, and then dried and painted their toenails. Toni couldn’t remember the last time she’d taken time to do this much self-care at one time, but she had to admit it was nice. Well, the self-care was fine, but it was definitely a perk to do it  _ with _ Cheryl.

When they’d finished their spa session, they cleaned up the living area, dumping the Epson water down the sink and crumpling the aluminum bins, shoving them into the trash along with the empty face mask packages. Then they put all of the resealable supplies back in Cheryl’s bag.

“Thank you so much for this, Cheryl,” Toni said gratefully, once it was all cleaned up. “Seriously, it was so thoughtful.”

“Of course. Only the best for my TT,” Cheryl insisted, batting her eyelashes at Toni, who bit down on her lower lip as the words caused a fire to ignite in between her thighs. Every time Cheryl said something like that— specifically with the word  _ my _ in it—she got like that. The possessiveness made her hot, and maybe that was because for so long she’d wanted that for her and Cheryl, and now it was potentially fully happening. But what it really made her want to do was to flatten Cheryl across her bed, crawl in between her legs, and make her scream. Toni couldn’t help the fire that had been awoken in her, and she stepped forward to abruptly grab Cheryl’s lips with her own.

Cheryl let out a small sound of pleasure at the sudden kiss, and Toni pushed her back, through the living room, until they reached the wall. She pinned Cheryl there, her hands falling from Cheryl’s waist down to her ass and squeezing as she sucked on Cheryl’s lower lip aggressively. Cheryl’s hands were in Toni’s hair, trying to grip into the mess of her braids, but Toni could feel when she gave up and began following the braids down to the ends, pulling out the hair ties so that Toni’s hair could loosen freely.

Toni released Cheryl’s bottom lip with a little pop before delving into the beautiful woman’s mouth, their tongues meeting forcefully. Toni squeezed Cheryl’s ass again, and the redhead groaned, trying to push away from the wall only to be pressed back again by Toni. She made herself impossibly closer to the fiery haired girl, her thigh coming in between Cheryl’s. She brought it up slightly, landing in against Cheryl’s covered center and causing a moan to escape her throat. It mostly died in their messy making out, but the sound was still audible.

Toni tore her lips way form Cheryl’s to lower them to Cheryl’s neck, feeling absolutely intoxicated when she heard Cheryl let out a full blown, genuine moan, her head rolling back. “ _ Fuck _ , Toni,” Cheryl whined, and Toni could feel her grinding down onto her thigh. Toni brought it up again, causing the redhead to whimper and grind even harder.

Toni pulled her lips a little away from Cheryl’s neck. “Oh my god, you’re so sexy, Cheryl,” Toni murmured against her skin, before pressing a few fluttery kisses over where she’d been sucking on the skin previously. “Say what you said again before. That I’m yours.”

“You’re mine,” Cheryl gasped out.

“Now say that you’re mine,” Toni heard herself command, hearing Cheryl moan again.

“I’m yours.”

Toni pulled away from Cheryl’s neck, grabbing Cheryl’s hands and pressing them to the wall. “One more time,” she requested, her voice at a whisper now.

“I’m yours, Toni. If you want me to be, I’m yours. And I’ll gladly take you to be mine. Be my girlfriend?  _ Please _ .”

Toni felt herself softening as Cheryl made the request, that pleading look in her eyes identical to the one that first night that she’d kissed her, the one where Toni had refused to discuss what the kiss meant, or what fueled it. She had been terrified then, and Cheryl had been worried for different reasons. This time, though, Toni didn’t quite know why Cheryl seemed so scared.

But then she heard herself ask, “Are you sure?” and she realized that that was probably why. Cheryl probably knew she’d ask that, knew that she’d be worried that the redhead wasn’t all in. She’d probably been scared to breach the subject, and maybe that’s why she’d simply said “my TT” twice now. So before Cheryl could answer, Toni clarified her question, “If you’re ready for that, Cheryl, I’m ready to be yours. But I’ve been ready to be yours since the moment I met you, and I don’t want you to feel like that has to rush  _ us _ . Because I don’t want to mess this up.”

“Messing this up is the last thing I’d ever want to do,” Cheryl promised. “Toni, you’re all I can think about lately. I’ve almost called you my girlfriend to like five different people in the past three days. I want you to be mine so badly. I want to be  _ yours _ so badly. Please? Be my girlfriend?”

Toni bit down on her lower lip. “Yes, of course I will be your girlfriend, Cher.” Cheryl let out a sigh of relief, and Toni leaned forward, intertwining their fingers against the wall as she pressed a suddenly soft kiss to Cheryl’s swollen lips. When she pulled away a moment later, she murmured, “You know, I did the same thing. On Thanksgiving, I was at work with this girl Hanna, and I mentioned you, and I was so close to saying  _ my girlfriend _ .”

“And now you can,” Cheryl replied softly.

“You can bet I’ll be saying it to every fucking person I see for the next few days,” Toni teased, pressing another soft kiss to those lips. “God I love your lips.”

Cheryl giggled. “I’ve noticed.” There were a few more short, sweet kisses, but their moment of intense sexual tension had passed for now, despite Toni’s thigh still resting in between Cheryl’s. Eventually, the redhead let out a breath. “We should start thinking about lunch, huh?”

“Pizza?”

“You know, before I started hanging out with you so much this past month, I actually ate healthy food.”

“Pizza it is, then!”

* * *

They did order pizza, half cheese and half pepperoni, and they successfully devoured the whole thing in about half an hour, Reign playing on the TV in the background. Then they’d settled into the couch to watch the show, but Toni had quickly passed out, and she hadn’t woken up until Sweet Pea got back at around four-thirty, and she’d awoken to see that Cheryl had also fallen asleep.

And at that point, she woke Cheryl up gently, saying that she had to get ready for work. Despite not wanting to go, Cheryl had given Toni a sweet kiss goodbye, grabbed her things, and waved politely at Sweet Pea before leaving. And Toni had let out a sad sigh, because life was not nearly as bright unless she had Cheryl with her.

Sweet Pea teased her about it, and she told him about their newest relationship update, and he was happy for her.

And that night, after Toni got back from her shift, she texted Veronica to tell her too, and the dark haired girl demanded a that a gushing session be scheduled for the next day, so it looked like Toni would be going to the dorms after her last class. She couldn’t help but hope that Cheryl would be there too.

When she curled up in her bed Sunday night, inhaling the smell of vanilla and cherries that her beautiful  _ girlfriend _ had left lingering on her pillows and on her comforter, she just wished that Cheryl could be there in bed with her. And she thought about earlier, with her girl pinned to the wall, and those moans. And she groaned, tossing and turning for a few minutes as she tried to stop thinking about it.

But she couldn’t, so she ended up dropping her hand in between her legs, and for the first time since before her first kiss with Cheryl, she finally relieved herself. And it wasn’t nearly as good as sex with Cheryl was sure to be, but she’d had red hair and dark eyes and soft, pale skin in her mind the whole time. And she’d heard those moans, and pictured Cheryl pinned against the wall, and it was easy to bring herself to climax. And she definitely had no problem falling asleep afterward, smelling Cheryl on her bed and herself on her fingers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man am I really fucking ready for Thanksgiving break. I need a break of classes and homework definitely, and I get to road trip with my gf and meet her family and all that jazz so that's exciting. BUT I'll actually get to see her less which is the only downside, meh. But anyway, I only have one more week of classes and then it's break! And then it's seriously crunch time to finals. But this story will be wrapped by then if I'm doing my math correctly. Four chapters left after this one. Hopefully I'll have something new to post by then. Maybe the break will give me some time to get some writing done.  
> Anyway I'm just rambling. It's been a long day-hell, it's been a long week lol. And I haven't gotten to see the new Riverdale yet! I won't get a chance till Saturday.  
> I hope you all have a lovely weekend, though, and I hope this chapter got you even more excited for the last four chapters! Thank you all for the continued support and comments and kudos <3 I appreciate you all so so much! xx


	12. I Won't Forget

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Toni and Cheryl are taking steps in their relationship and Toni has a heart to heart with Veronica.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey loves! Soooo I totally spaced this past week and forgot to post my sneak peek and early update on time, so they went up Thursday and Friday and so update is today! So so sorry for the delay. I tweeted about it (@BrittzandTana), but I know not all of you follow me on Twitter, but that's where I'll ever tweet about things if delays happen. I hope that the length and content of this chapter will make up for how late it was!!! Enjoy!!x

**** Toni knocked on Veronica’s dorm door, two boxed chicken strawberry salads in her hand and her bookbag slung over her shoulder. One of Veronica’s classes that coincided with Toni’s usual lunch time had been canceled, so she’d taken it upon herself to get her friend lunch, just texting her that she was coming over.

The black haired girl opened the door, the smile on her face stretching to a full grin when she saw the food. “Ah, Tiny! You’re the best, I’m starving!” Veronica exclaimed, grabbing one of the boxes and swiftly moving over to her bed to open the box. “Do you have forks?”

“Yes, give me a sec,” Toni said with an eyeroll. “I know you, V, and I know that when a class gets canceled, that doesn’t suddenly fill you with motivation to go and get food. Do you still get this for lunch on weekdays?”

“Sometimes,” Veronica answered as Toni set her bag down and closed the dorm door, reaching into her jacket pocket for the two wrapped forks she had. She handed one to her friend. “Thanks, T!”

“Yeah, of course.” Toni shrugged it off. “I feel like we’ve barely been hanging out or even really talking, and I feel kinda bad about it. Like, I see Sweet Pea every day because we  _ live _ together, but with you being with Betty, and now me and Cheryl…”

“Hey,” Veronica interrupted, “we can always make time for each other, and it’s okay if it’s not as often as it used to be. It’s not going to change how close we are, Toni.”

“Yeah, I know you’re right,” Toni agreed, joining her on the bed and opening up her salad as well. They both started eating, and after a few bites, Veronica looked pointedly at her best friend.

“But speaking of  _ you and Cheryl _ . Oh my god! Dish! I remember talking to you before Thanksgiving, you mentioned not wanting to rush into  _ anything _ . And not that I think you’re rushing, because I don’t, but I didn’t expect the big  _ girlfriend _ label to be tacked on so soon after we talked about that.”

Toni let out a breath, because Veronica was right. The Wednesday before Thanksgiving, Veronica had asked her when they were making it official, and Toni’s answer had been that she didn’t want to rush, so she wasn’t sure. “I guess… I mean, I guess everyone envisions that as soon as their crush asks them out, they’d be like ‘of course, yes, definitely!’ But I think it was kind of scary, knowing how long my feelings have been there and how short hers have been in comparison. That doesn’t change how I feel though, and it’s… I can’t even think of the word, rude? Selfish? Foolish? Whatever, it’s stupid for me to discount Cheryl’s exact feelings just because they haven’t existed for a year.”

“But you guys talked about it, right? Your thoughts on it?”

Toni nodded. “Well, sort of yeah. She asked me, and when she did, I could already tell that she wasn’t expecting an easy yes out of me. But I didn’t make it very hard for her, I just wanted to make sure that she wasn’t rushing because of how  _ I _ felt. I wanted her to be asking me because she’s completely ready for it. And she promised that she is and that she’s taking this seriously and doesn’t want to mess it up. And I can’t not trust that, or else what kind of relationship is that? And  _ god _ , V, it sounds so good for her to say that she’s mine and I’m hers.”

Veronica was smiling a big, goofy grin. “You need to give me an exact play by play of the moment she asked you, I want to envision it perfectly so that one day I can pass the story on to posterity!”

Toni smirked. “Not sure this one should be passed on to posterity, Ronnie.” She wiggled her eyebrows playfully and Veronica let out a gag.

“Wait, what? Did you guys finally—”

“No,” Toni interrupted, “we haven’t had sex. But we might’ve if the girlfriend thing hadn’t come up. We were making out and shit. But yesterday at some point she called me hers, and the night before she’d said something similar, and it was driving me crazy. I think it was her way of telling me she was ready before she finally just up and asked. I think she knew I wasn’t going to ask her—or that, if I did ask her, it would’ve been later.”

“Well, Tiny,” Veronica said, taking another bite of her salad, “I am so happy for you  _ and _ Cheryl. That girl definitely finally deserves someone like you instead of the past asshats she’s dated. And you’re such a damn good friend and person that you  _ definitely _ deserve a relationship that makes you happy.”

Toni smiled. “Thanks, Ronnie.”

“So I know you guys are newly official, but you’ve had like… talks about things, right?”

Toni knew what Veronica was asking underneath the surface of her question—she was referring about their talk a couple of weeks back, about Toni talking about her past. But little did Veronica know that not only had Toni opened up, but Cheryl had opened up so much too. It all felt so perfect. “Yes, V, I told her everything about what happened with my parents. And not that I’m mad for you asking, but why exactly do you care so much?”

Veronica let out a little breath, facing her best friend fully. “I love you, Toni, and I love Cheryl. But I’m not going to give either of you one of those best friend talks—how would I even do that? It would be stupid. And I know Sweet Pea won’t do that to Cheryl either. Moreover, I would never think it my place to bring up your past relationships with your current girlfriend. But we both know, Tiny, that you’ve never been good at telling people about your past. You dated that girl Jennifer all through senior year—”

“Off and on,” Toni added, because for some reason, it made a difference to her.

“—Okay yeah, off and on all through senior year, and you  _ never _ told her why you were living on Sweet Pea’s couch. And what was worse… she didn’t care enough to ask you. She didn’t even try to ask me or Sweet Pea. You told me that you’d said you didn’t like to talk about it, and she totally accepted that. And of course, you shouldn’t ever talk about something that makes you uncomfortable, and I guess it’s good that she didn’t pressure you. But I think being in a relationship is being able to open up about uncomfortable things with someone because you know that they’re supporting you, that they care about you and they  _ don’t _ care about the struggles of your past. So… I guess I just wanted to make sure that Cheryl is that person for you. Because I know you haven’t told  _ anyone _ in New York about why you slept on Sweet Pea’s couch all through high school, even though they all know that you did. You deserve someone who makes you feel safe enough to talk about it, Toni.”

Toni listened to Veronica’s explanation very carefully, forgetting about the food in her lap. “Veronica…  _ shit _ , Ronnie, I fucking love you. You’re seriously like the best friend I could’ve ever asked for.”

“Better than Sweet Pea?” Veronica asked, perking up a little and smirking.

“You know that I can’t rank you guys against each other, it’s like picking a favorite sibling.”

“Which neither of us know anything about,” Veronica reminded her with a laugh. “Anyway, I love you too, Toni. What are best friends for?”

* * *

Wednesday evening, Toni refused to go back to her apartment after class. She hadn’t seen Cheryl since Sunday, aside from very briefly on Monday after she’d left Veronica’s dorm and Cheryl had also been leaving the dorms, heading to a group meeting for one of her class projects. They’d barely had a conversation and had shared only a tiny little peck. Of course they’d been texting, and Toni loved waking up to good morning texts and sneaking silly little messages to her girlfriend during class or just anytime really. And at night, when they’d both called it a night from homework, or like on Tuesday after Toni had gotten back from her shift, they’d text or call for a little while until they were both too sleepy to keep it up.

But Toni was in desperate need of actual physical interaction with her girlfriend, so after her last class, she texted Veronica.

**Tiny Toni – Is Cheryl at her dorm?**

**V-Ronnie – I don’t know? Is she not answering you?**

**Tiny Toni – I was gonna surprise her.**

**V-Ronnie – Lemme check.**

Toni was already on her way to the dorms, but she kept her phone in her hand as she waited for the response from Veronica. It came after a minute.

**V-Ronnie – She is in her dorm! And her roommate is out—as per usual. Cheryl and I got fucking lucky that our roommates are always out, tbh.**

**Tiny Toni – Hella convenient, especially for you lol. Why don’t you and Betty just go to her place anyway? XD**

**V-Ronnie – She says mine’s more convenient because it’s on campus. Have you and Cheryl never hung out in the dorms, like even as friends?**

**Tiny Toni – No, only at your dorm lol. She’s always come over to mine, but she hates the dorms, so.**

**V-Ronnie – Really?**

**Tiny Toni – Can you blame her? That place is so tiny.**

In all honesty, Toni had assumed that Cheryl would’ve mentioned to Veronica that she wanted to leave the dorms, but it did make sense that she wouldn’t. Still, Toni felt bad about revealing something about Cheryl to Veronica without any permission. She made a mental note to mention it to her girlfriend later.

**Tiny Toni – Alright I’m at the dorms, see you, V!**

Toni navigated to the door she remembered to be Cheryl’s and knocked on it gingerly. “Just a minute!” she heard Cheryl call, and then a few moments later, the door swung open. “Oh! TT!”

“Hey,” Toni greeted, a small smile on her face. “You busy?”

“Kind of, but not with something I can’t continue at a later time,” Cheryl admitted honestly. “Come on in.”

Toni walked into the dorm as Cheryl stepped backwards to allow her to. It looked exactly like Veronica’s, lay out wise, with two twin beds, two nightstands, and two dressers, but the decorations were totally different. It was also much neater than Veronica’s had ever been. “I can’t believe I’ve never seen your dorm before.” It was easy to identify which side of the dorm was Cheryl’s, because almost everything on it was red and black. The other side was incredibly bland in comparison.

“Yeah, well, I don’t usually like hanging out here with people,” Cheryl admitted. “My roommate is gone a lot, but the few times I’ve had someone over, she likes to randomly pop back in and be annoying. She hates guests.”

“Oh, well—”

“Whatever you are about to say, TT, don’t.” Toni obeyed the order, her lips settling back into a smile.

“So what were you busy with?”

“Homework,” Cheryl answered, “but it’s my final project for a class we don’t have a final in, so I still have a couple of weeks to do it.”

“Ugh, I’m so not excited for finals,” Toni said as Cheryl closed the dorm door behind her. “I have one on the last day, and ugh, yeah, not excited.”

“I think it sucks how close to Christmas our break finally starts. So many schools get out earlier than us,” Cheryl said with an eyeroll, and Toni nodded. Cheryl went over to her bed, clearing off the papers that were spread across it—the project she’d been doing, assumedly. She then sat at the head of the bed, patting a hand next to her, and Toni joined her, slipping off her boots so that she didn’t get them on the blankets as she pulled her feet up and under her. “What do you usually do for the holidays, TT?”

“Ah, work,” Toni admitted, biting on the inside of her lower lip. “I get to pick two holiday days to have off. So since I worked Thanksgiving, I requested Christmas and New Year Eve off. So I’ll be working on Christmas Eve, and probably quite a few nights around then. Kinda what I did last winter too. Sweets will be working a lot too, but last year on Christmas Eve and Christmas, he went back to see his dad and his aunt.”

“So you were on alone on Christmas last year?” Cheryl asked with a frown. “Because Veronica went back to see her parents, didn’t she?”

Toni nodded. “She invited me to come with, but her parents never liked me, and I didn’t want to be gone for a week, which was how long she left for. But it wasn’t too bad. I kept up texting everyone—you included.”

“I remember,” Cheryl assured her with a chuckle.

“You wanna know a secret?” Toni asked, scooting closer to Cheryl on the small bed. Cheryl looked at her eyes and nodded once. “I was trying to romance you last winter.”

Cheryl let out a little laugh as her eyebrows lifted. “Honestly?”

“Yeah,” Toni admitted. “You’d broken up with Archie, and I started texting you more and you started becoming more responsive over the break. But when the semester started, you were so busy, and I realized that you hadn’t been on the same page as me over the break, and then you started dating that guy whose name I can never remember.”

Cheryl smirked a little. “Garrett.”

“Yeah, whatever,” Toni muttered with an eyeroll. “So I gave up.”

“I’m sorry,” Cheryl said quietly, a little smile on her face.

“Don’t apologize, it all worked out the way it was supposed to.”

“Do you believe that? Do you believe in fate, and things happening the way they’re supposed to, and all that?”

Toni hummed thoughtfully, shifting her hand to Cheryl’s thigh and swiping her thumb back and forth slowly as she considering the question. “Yeah, kind of. But I don’t think there’s necessarily one path we’re all following. But I do think that if something doesn’t ever end up happening, it just wasn’t supposed to happen. I don’t like living with regrets and shit like that. When I was younger, I used to think about how I could’ve done something different to make my parents love me enough to not turn back to drugs and ruin their lives beyond repair, but after a while, I realized that lingering on it didn’t matter. And I kind of just decided that I wasn’t meant to grow up with my parents. And I mean, look where I am now. Way better off than I would’ve been if I’d stayed under the care.”

“That’s a comforting way to think about it,” Cheryl agreed. “My mother used to talk about fate and destiny. She told me I was destined to be alone, that there was nothing I could do to change that.”

Toni furrowed her eyebrows. “Oh my god. Your mother sounds worse and worse every time you bring her up.”

“Yeah,” Cheryl agreed. “Last winter, after I broke up with Archie and went home to visit her and my Nana Rose, I told her that I had broken things off with him, and she wasn’t surprised. She said that Jason was the one who would’ve ended up with someone, that no one could love a girl like me. I wasn’t in a good place that winter, and honestly, texting you helped me a lot. And I know I don’t really have to apologize for not realizing that you liked me, but that would be my excuse during that time period. I was still trying for my mother’s acceptance, deep down. Sometimes I still want it, but I’m trying not to anymore.”

“Oh, Cher…” Toni wrapped her arms around the redhead comfortingly. “Fuck her, she doesn’t know what she’s talking about.”

Cheryl chuckled as she nodded in agreement. “You’re right. She’s a horrible person. Worse than my father was, and he was  _ awful _ too. Over the summer, I was really glad for the trip to France, because it meant that I wouldn’t be stuck with just my mother for three months. Of course, my Nana would be there too, but that doesn’t change much. Truthfully, I’ve been looking for some reason—an excuse, I guess—to not go home this winter.”

Toni understood Cheryl’s original question now, and she pulled away from Cheryl, letting her left hand fall into Cheryl’s lap, where Cheryl’s hands both grabbed it, and her right hand to rest gently on her girlfriend’s back. “Well, I’ll gladly be your excuse, if it works.”

A smile appeared on that beautiful face. “The thing is,” Cheryl said softly, “the dorms kind of, basically close during the winter. I would’ve had to request to stay here during those three weeks by now, and I don’t know if they’ll let me do it late.”

“Cheryl,” Toni interrupted, “if you want to, you’re welcome to stay with me for the break. I don’t want you to have to go back and stay with your mother if you don’t want to. And you won’t hear any complaints from me about having you around for three weeks.”

Cheryl sucked her bottom lip into her mouth as she looked at Toni hopefully. “Are you sure, TT?”

“I’m positive.” Toni moved her hand from Cheryl’s back to push some of the fiery hair out of her girlfriend’s face. “Fuck, you’re so beautiful.”

Cheryl suddenly released Toni’s hands, her own moving up to tangle into Toni’s hair and pull her closer for a deep kiss. Toni hummed against Cheryl’s lips before fighting Cheryl for control of it. The redhead only fought back for a few seconds, then letting Toni have control of her lips and tongue. Toni rotated her body so that it was fully facing Cheryl, rising up for a moment to shift to a straddling position across Cheryl’s lap. Cheryl’s hands slid down Toni’s back to just above her ass, pulling her impossibly closer.

Toni grinded her hips down against Cheryl’s upper thighs, causing a deep groan to emanate from her girlfriend’s throat. Toni started to break her lips away from Cheryl’s, changing her mind at the last moment and grabbing that plump lower lip in between her teeth and then sucking on it pointedly. After a moment, she released it and did pull away a bit, keeping their faces close though as she gently pushed Cheryl back and down onto her bed.

Cheryl rested against her pillow, her chest rising and falling heavily. “Damn,” Toni murmured, absorbing this beautiful scene of having Cheryl beneath her, looking ready for anything. “Fuck, there are so many things I would do to you right now.”

Cheryl’s eyes darkened as she bit down on her lower lip. “What’s stopping you?”

“A lot of things,” Toni admitted, her hands falling to the bottom of Cheryl’s top, edging their fingertips underneath the fabric against warm, soft skin. “Like the fact that one of the reasons I came over to see you was to see if we could go get food, because I haven’t eaten since lunch. And also the fact that I don’t think we have enough time to do it all justice.  _ And _ , and this one is the main thing stopping me, the fact that we’re in the dorms, and we both know how thin these walls and doors are.” She danced the pads of her fingers over Cheryl’s skin under her top. “But trust me, it’s not for lack of want.”

“God, Toni,” Cheryl groaned, “get down here and kiss me.”

Toni obeyed instantly, leaning forward and lowering herself to press her lips to Cheryl’s. She kept one hand against Cheryl’s midsection, but the other she brought up to the bed next to the redhead, keeping herself propped up. She worshipped Cheryl’s lips, and she knew that Cheryl was getting worked up. Toni knew that they should slow down if they weren’t going to actually finish it out, but she couldn’t force herself to stop while Cheryl’s hands were on her lower back, keeping her where she was.

She edged her hand up higher under Cheryl’s shirt, pushing the fabric up, until she felt the material of Cheryl’s bra at her fingertips. She felt Cheryl arching her back, an invitation to take Cheryl’s encapsulated breast under her palm, squeezing experimentally. Cheryl gasped, a full open mouth gasp, at the feeling, and Toni lowered her lips to her neck. “Toni,” Cheryl moaned out as Toni attached her mouth to Cheryl’s pulse point. “ _ Fuck _ , Toni.”

Toni brought her lips back to Cheryl’s, and she got lost in her girlfriend’s lips and tongue, as per usual. Her head was foggy, unable to think of anything other than the beautiful woman below her and the feeling of her kiss and her breast, which Toni still had a firm grasp on.

And then the sound of a key turning the lock on the door snapped her out of it in a second, and she sat up abruptly, pulling her hand out from under Cheryl’s shirt, which the redhead was pulling back down quickly as the door swung open.

Cheryl’s roommate, a girl who Toni vaguely recognized from passing in the dorms a few time, walked in, her gaze falling on the two of them completely unamused.

“Sorry,” Cheryl squeaked uncharacteristically as she sat up, Toni scooting off of her as she stifled a laugh at the awkward situation. “We were just leaving to go get dinner.” She hopped off the bed, grabbing Toni’s hand and pulling her up. They both grabbed their bags and phones quickly and Cheryl pulled Toni out of the dorm, the door closing rather aggressively behind them. “Oh my god, I  _ told you _ she just shows up anytime I have someone over!”

Toni started laughing all the sudden, getting a glare from her girlfriend. “I’m sorry, that was really funny.”

“Oh yeah, really hilarious,” Cheryl muttered. “Come on, you wanted food, right?”

“Right,” Toni confirmed, biting on her lip to keep herself from laughing some more.

“We’re going somewhere healthy,” Cheryl stated firmly, fully intertwining their fingers and squeezing the pink haired girl’s hand in her own as she started leading them out of the dorms.

“Whatever you want, babe.” Cheryl softened at that, and Toni smiled a bit more gently, the desire to laugh mostly gone now. “Sorry we got walked in on.”

“It’s not your fault.”

“Well then I’m sorry for laughing.”

Cheryl rolled her eyes. “Stop apologizing, you don’t have to be sorry for laughing. I’m just. Worked up. Let’s go get food.”

Toni smirked a little, squeezing her girlfriend’s hand tightly and feeling a little bad for getting Cheryl so worked up knowing that they probably wouldn’t end up actually having sex. “Don’t worry, I’ll make it up to you at some point.”

“I know you will.”

* * *

Toni didn’t know where the frat party on Friday night was exactly, so to prevent holding up Cheryl, Veronica and Betty—who was also joining them, understandably—she went to class already dressed how she planned to be for the party. She was wearing heeled lace up boots over dark, slightly torn up jeans, a black bra with a black, half mesh top over it, and a flannel tied around her waist. As always, she topped the outfit off with her leather jacket to accommodate for the weather, and she threw on some jewelry as well.

It was a bit much for how she usually dressed for class, but no so much that anyone really noticed. And as soon as she was out of her last class of the day, she sent a text to the group chat that Veronica had formed for the four of them the night before.

**Toni – What time are we leaving for the party?**

**V-Ronnie – In an hour!**

Nodding to herself, she started toward the dorms, switching over to her messages with Cheryl.

**TT – Hey, just got out of class, I’m coming over!**

**Bombshell – Ok!!**

After Wednesday, Toni had decided that if she could help it, she would not be spending more than a day without seeing Cheryl, if even that long. So on Thursday, she’d managed to meet up with her girlfriend for lunch. It was nice to see her at all during the day, but Toni had been looking forward to the weekend so much.

She hadn’t explicitly asked Cheryl if she wanted to come over after the party, but she had a feeling that she’d want to, especially after drinking and dancing and hanging out all night. And Toni worked the next day, but it was a two to six shift, which meant that she would have the evening to spend with Cheryl, if the redhead was free.

Toni knew that she needed to actually ask her girlfriend if she wanted to hang out during those times rather than just expecting that they would, but she wasn’t too worried about what Cheryl’s answer would be.

When she got to Cheryl’s dorm, she only had to knock once for the door to swing open in a matter of seconds. “Hey!” Cheryl exclaimed, and Toni immediately was getting weird vibes from her. Maybe it was the way she was standing, seeming very alert or alarmed. “Come on in. I’m still getting ready.”

Toni followed Cheryl into the dorm, closing the door behind her as Cheryl seated herself at her desk, where her mirror and makeup was all set out. “How was class today?” Toni asked, trying to figure out the strange energy in the room, as she walked around to Cheryl’s bed, sitting on the edge of it.

“Average,” Cheryl answered lamely, grabbing her mascara and beginning to layer it over her eyelashes. Toni examined the outfit her girlfriend was wearing—the thicker winter leggings underneath a very tight, fitting red dress. She was absolutely stunning. Her knee high red boots were sitting next to the bed, so Toni assumed those were what she would be wearing with it.

“Where on earth do you keep all your clothes?” Toni asked, realizing that that little dresser could in no way hold all of Cheryl’s fashion belongings.

Cheryl looked at Toni with amusement, looking a little more relaxed for a moment at least. “You’re sitting on them, TT. I have a plethora of storage bins under that bed. The one nice thing about having a cheap bed is that since the mattress is so thin and there’s hardly any support under it, there’s lots of space underneath the frame.”

“Shit, I forget that people can put things under beds. Since, you know, mine is just a mattress on a box spring.”

Cheryl hummed. “At least your bed is much comfier than mine.”

“Speaking of my bed,” Toni started, drawing the redhead’s curious gaze, “you wanna just come over after the party tonight? I miss you.”

“Yes, definitely,” Cheryl agreed, giving her a small smile and then looking back to the mirror, her posture changing from how it had relaxed a moment ago. “Won’t be able to bring an overnight bag or anything, though.”

“That’s okay, I don’t mind if you use my toothpaste and wear my clothes,” Toni teased.

“Excellent.” Cheryl set her mascara down and began looking at all of her makeup for something. That’s when Toni noticed that Cheryl’s foot was silently tapping on the ground at a rapid speed, something Toni wasn’t sure she’d ever seen Cheryl do.

“Are you good, Cher? You seem kinda… alarmed or nervous.”

Cheryl looked at Toni with a look of confusion that Toni didn’t buy for a second. She might be a performing arts major, but she couldn’t fool Toni. “What do you mean, TT? I’m fine.”

“No, babe, you’re not,” Toni argued, standing up and coming over to lean her side against the desk. She looked down at Cheryl, who was avoiding eye contact with her at all costs, it seemed. “Are you nervous for the party?”

Cheryl didn’t say anything, grabbing her lipstick and opening the tube, layering some of it over her already red stained lips. Either she was simply reapplying after having it on all day, or she was stalling, or, as Toni suspected, both.

“Cheryl,” Toni stated firmly, “talk to me. Please?”

Cheryl sighed, closing her lipstick and setting it with the rest of her makeup before turning to look up at Toni. “I  _ hate _ that I’m nervous, TT.”

“It makes perfect sense for you to anxious about this, Cher. The last time you went to a party, you got way more wasted than normal because you were trying to figure out how to cope with something awful that almost happened to you. On  _ top _ of the fact that you were lonely. And you know that I couldn’t care less what we do tonight, so if you don’t wanna go through with this party, we can do anything else. But if we do go, you know that you are  _ not _ going to be alone. I’m going to be with you the whole time. No one is ever going to get the chance to do what that asshole almost did  _ ever _ again, Cheryl. Okay?”

The redhead bit down on her lower lip gently. “You know how… he brought me that hush money? And how I turned it in?” Toni nodded. “When I was leaving the office, some guy saw me and called me an attention whore.”

“What? Who? Cheryl, why didn’t you—”

“I don’t care what he called me, Toni,” Cheryl interrupted. “But I do care that the fact that he said anything means that he  _ knew _ what I was doing there. How many people do you think know about what happened on Halloween? What if people see me and they think—”

“Think what, Cher?” Toni asked. “You didn’t  _ do _ anything, you’re just trying to get justice for a terrible experience that clearly has caused you anxiety since, and to stop a creep from trying to do horrible things to other girls. If anyone thinks anything, it should be that you’re brave as  _ fuck _ , okay?”

“Toni…” Cheryl looked like she wanted to protest more, but then she just let out a breath and shook her head. “Okay, okay. I just. I need to stop thinking about it.”

“Do you want to skip the party?”

“No, I want to go,” Cheryl said with insistence. “I won’t look weak, TT. I’m going to prove to everyone that no matter what they think—because as sweet as what you said was, most people are never going to think of me that way—I’m still Cheryl Bombshell.”

Toni felt a mixture of emotions, one of them being a general sadness at the fact that people were so narrow minded and that they were so quick to toss labels on people they barely knew. But she was also proud of her girl for being so incredibly brave. “Hell yeah, you are,” Toni agreed, a soft smile appearing on her face.

Cheryl stood up from her desk, her fingers hooking through Toni’s belt loops and turning the smaller girl so that she was pinned fully against the desk. “ _ And _ , I’m going to show everyone there at the party that  _ I _ have the hottest girlfriend.”

Toni let out a little moan as Cheryl suddenly encapsulated her lips with her own. She knew it was messing up Cheryl’s lipstick, and definitely messing up Toni’s lip gloss covered lips, but that was a problem to worry about  _ after _ the make out session. As quickly as she could manage, Toni effectively took over control of the kiss, though Cheryl had maintained it for longer than any time before. After a few seconds of Toni sucking on Cheryl’s lips, though, the redhead took back control, using her grip on Toni’s belt loops to press her harder against the desk. “Someone’s feeling more aggressive than normal,” Toni murmured against those red lips as they broke apart for air.

Cheryl didn’t say anything, bringing their lips together again, more passionately than before. But she was in full control of the kiss, and Toni gave up trying to get it back. She was pretty sure she understood what was going through Cheryl’s mind. She was in a rut about what people were thinking about her, and she wanted to be in control. But she couldn’t control what people thought of her. Control was not something she often had, that was something Toni could easily recognize. And right now, Cheryl wanted some kind of control, so Toni would let her have it. Although all of their previous heated moments indicated that Cheryl was pretty much definitely a bottom, Toni didn’t mind switching things up every now and then.

Cheryl’s hands released Toni’s belt loops, and they dropped to the backs of Toni’s thighs, surprising the pink haired girl as they gripped and lifted her so that she was seated on the desk. Toni was ridiculously turned on by the sudden shift, and she wrapped her thighs and legs around Cheryl tightly as she brought her hands to her girlfriend’s waist.

At this point, Cheryl began relinquishing control, to Toni’s surprise. And though Toni was seated on the desk, she began to control the kiss, biting down onto Cheryl’s delicious bottom lip and getting a quiet moan from the redhead. Cheryl’s hands came up to Toni’s hair, tangling into it and gripping firmly. Toni moaned at the feeling, and she felt Cheryl experimentally tug on her pink locks gently. Toni grunted, tightening her thighs around Cheryl. Their lips broke apart to allow them to catch their breath, and Cheryl murmured, “Do you like it when I pull your hair?”

Toni felt a blush coming to her cheeks. “Yeah.” She pulled her face a little further away to look at Cheryl’s. “Oh god, your lipstick.”

“You should see  _ you _ ,” Cheryl teased, amused. “My lipstick looks really good on your face.” She leaned forward, pressing a firm kiss to Toni’s cheek before the shorter girl pulled her face away.

“Hey! Now I’m gonna have to wash that off  _ and _ fix my lips before we leave.”

“Or you could leave it there,” Cheryl suggested, smirking, “so no one forgets that you’re mine.”

“You’re awfully possessive for a bottom,” Toni teased, testing the waters with the conversation.

Cheryl’s jaw dropped. “Who says I’m a  _ bottom _ ?” she demanded.

“Uh, all your body language when we make out,” Toni told her, lifting an eyebrow. “Tell me I’m wrong, Cher.”

“You’re wrong! I’m not a  _ pillow princess _ . And you couldn’t even really know, need I remind you that we haven’t had sex yet.”

Toni was fighting a smirk now. “Babe, being a bottom doesn’t mean you’re a pillow princess. It just means that you usually prefer to be on the bottom.” Cheryl was pouting at her, and it was so adorable. “Oh come on, Cher. You can’t tell me after how far we almost went on Wednesday that you’re not a bottom.”

Cheryl sniffed. “Maybe I’m a switch.”

“If you are, that’s fine. I’m just saying what I’ve observed, and you still haven’t fully denied it,” Toni told her with humor in her voice. Her girlfriend hesitated, and then let out a little sigh.

“Okay, maybe. But how can I really know? I’ve never… well, you know I’ve slept with a woman before. But I was the… well, I was the  _ bottom _ , as you’ve said, for that experience. So how am I supposed to know if I’m a bottom or a switch if I’ve never even been on top?”

Toni laughed a little, feeling a little bad for bombarding her girlfriend with this before they’d even had sex. “Okay, this was all my bad for bringing this up. It’s not even really binary, though it does sound like it. Only time will tell, okay? And to address the reason I brought it up, for the record, I  _ really _ do like it when you say possessive shit.”

Cheryl nodded shyly. ”Ah, speaking of time—”

Suddenly, there was a loud knocking on the door. “Hey, it’s B and V, let us in!”

“Shit,” Toni muttered, pushing herself off of the desk as Cheryl stepped back. She grabbed a couple of tissues, handing one to Toni, and they both began to wipe their mess of lipstick and lip gloss off of their faces. When Cheryl was cleaned up, she tossed the tissue into the trash and opened the door.

“Finally,” Veronica muttered, stepping into the room and dragging her girlfriend with her. “Oh, Toni, hey. I didn’t realize you were already over here.”

Toni gave her friend a smile, noticing the amused smirk on her face. “Hey, Ronnie. And Betty. Yep. I thought we weren’t leaving for another half hour?”

“Well, we’re ready, so we decided to come over,” Betty said with a shrug.

Cheryl looked at Toni with a smirk as the pink haired girl scoffed a little and asked, “You couldn’t think of something else to do for half an hour.”

Veronica feigned hurt. “Aw, my best friend didn’t want to see me? Too busy making out with your girlfriend?”

“No,” Toni huffed out, crossing her arms over her chest.

Betty snickered. “Ah, Toni, you have a little something…” She tapped on her own cheek, and Toni felt blood rushing to her face. She’d totally forgotten to wipe away the kiss shaped lipstick mark from her cheek as she’d frantically cleaned her lips.

“Oh my god,” she groaned, grabbing another tissue and wiping at her cheek.

“I think we know who’s bottoming,” Veronica stage whispered to her girlfriend, and that got a grin and a pointed look toward Toni out of Cheryl. Toni’s jaw dropped as she looked at her the dark haired girl, feeling betrayed.

“Veronica Lodge! You fucking take that back, you bitch! I’m the one who first explained to you what that even  _ meant _ !” Toni exclaimed, and Veronica was laughing her ass off now. “Ronnie!” Cheryl was trying not to laugh now, and Betty was biting down on her lower lip to fight a laugh as well. “Oh my god. This is ridiculous.” She grabbed her lip gloss out of her little purse and grabbed Cheryl’s makeup mirror, using it to look at her reddened face as she reapplied.

Veronica finally stopped laughing, and she gave her best friend a slightly apologetic look. “Alright, Tiny, I’m sorry. You’re just too fun to tease.”

Toni looked to her girlfriend, who was looking at her with those warm, bright eyes. “I don’t know if I’m more betrayed by Veronica right now or you,” she said in mock hurt. “I’m demanding reparations.”

Cheryl smirked at the reference to their silly back and forth text conversation about reparations for teasing. “Fine,” she agreed with a little laugh, but then she just reached for her lipstick and gently took her mirror from the pink haired girl. “Later.”

“Wait, what is that, some secret code?” Veronica asked, offended all of the sudden at being left out. She crossed her arms over her chest, and Betty rolled her eyes, wrapping one arm around the girl’s waist.

“Babe, you don’t have to know everything that happens between Toni and Cheryl.”

“Sure I do,” Veronica disagreed, giving her girlfriend a little pout.

Betty lifted an eyebrow. “Do you want Toni to know everything that happens between us?” Veronica flushed a little all of the sudden and abruptly shook her head back and forth. “Then I say we leave them alone, because I think we just teased Toni enough for the whole night.”

“Your girlfriend is right,” Toni said to Veronica firmly.

Cheryl set down her mirror, her lipstick fully reapplied now, and slipped the tube of red into her little purse. “Alright, well, I’m ready to go if you all are,” she said, grabbing for Toni’s hand.

“Great!” Veronica clapped her hands together. “Let’s get going then!”

“Where exactly are we going?”

“Some frat guys have this bit studio apartment off campus a bit,” Veronica answered. “Figured we can all split a cab?”

“Works for me,” Toni said with a shrug, and Cheryl squeezed her hand as they left the little dorm room.

* * *

About half an hour later found the four of them in said studio apartment, surrounded by so many people from NYU—some that they recognized, and many that they didn’t. The thing was, the space for the party, though large by New York apartment standards, was way too small for the amount of people trying to fit in it. Everyone was literally touching all of the people around them, and it was kind of crazy.

After they’d all gotten drinks, they’d somehow separated into their separate pairs. Toni made a mental note to text Veronica at some point later to check up on her, and she knew Veronica would do the same for her. They’d had this talk earlier in the week, and had decided that, even though they were both in relationships now, it didn’t hurt to check up on each other at parties. After what had almost happened with Cheryl, they knew there was no such thing as being too careful.

Toni never let Cheryl out of her sight.

She could tell that at the beginning of the party, Cheryl was nervous. She kept looking around more than she would normally, and anytime someone looked at her, Toni could see her have a moment of worry. But Toni would just grab her hands and squeeze, or, after they’d both downed a glass of some trashcan punch, she’d grab her waist. There was loud music thumping through the studio, so after about twenty minutes of being at the party, the pair started dancing.

It was like the club again, but this time, they didn’t have to hold back. Their hands roamed each other’s bodies, and they grinded into each other, and at some point, Toni had attached her lips to Cheryl’s neck, unable to resist. But the tight space made it pretty hard to get away with doing anything more risqué than that. After dancing for about an hour, they made their way through the crowd, their hands linked, toward the alcohol. They each grabbed a beer can and popped them open.

As they leaned against the kitchen counter, Toni grabbed her phone from her little bag and saw that she had a text from Veronica.

**V-Ronnie – PSA! There’s a staircase outside the apartment that goes up to the roof, and there’s some partiers up here, but it’s not nearly as bad. That’s where Betty and I are right now!**

**V-Ronnie – Also check in asap, gotta make sure neither of you two died!**

**Tiny Toni – We’re both alive! You guys still good?**

“Ronnie said that there’s people up on the roof but that it’s way less crowded, if you wanna go check it out?”

“That sounds nice,” Cheryl admitted. So Toni dropped her phone back into her purse to free up a hand, with which she grabbed her girlfriend’s and started pulling her out of the apartment. They found the staircase outside of it and climbed it up to a door that was propped open. From the cool air coming through the crack, it was obvious that it went outside.

Toni pushed it open, and cold air enveloped her as she stepped out onto the roof. Sure enough, there were people scattered around the roof, but without any music, it was so much calmer. People were split off in little groups, some smoking joints or cigarettes, and most nursing some sort of drink.

“There’s the rest of ours,” Cheryl said, nodding toward the left side of the roof, where Betty and Veronica were leaning against one of the various structures on the roof, making out.

“Well, good to know that they’re both still alive,” Toni teased.

**Tiny Toni – We’re on the roof too, I can tell you’re having fun LOL**

“Maybe they have the right idea,” Cheryl suggested, and Toni looked at her girlfriend with a curious gaze, but Cheryl was suddenly pulling her around to the side of the brick wall of the stair bulkhead. Cheryl leaned against the wall, pulling Toni toward her and bringing their lips together abruptly.

Toni’s hands immediately rushed to Cheryl’s waist, and she heard a can clatter to the ground, liquid splashing her legs suddenly. She pulled away from Cheryl and looked down. “Oh shit, I totally forgot I was even holding that. Shit, it’s on your shoes—”

“I don’t care,” Cheryl groaned, pulling Toni toward her against and capturing her lips. Toni pressed her girlfriend to the wall, forgetting the fallen beer and focusing all of her attention on her girlfriend.

When they were starved for air, Toni pulled away slightly. Cheryl was panting as Toni tried to calm her own breathing, inhaling deeply and taking in the view—the hottest girl in the world pressed between her and a brick wall, her red hair easily rivaling the old brick color, even in the cold, darkness of the evening. “Fuck, Cheryl, you’re  _ so _ fucking perfect.”

“I’m far from perfect, TT,” Cheryl whispered.

“You’re perfect to me, you always have been.”

Cheryl searched Toni’s gaze. “I want you, Toni.” The words were so quiet, that Toni almost didn’t hear them. In fact, she might’ve thought she’d made the sounds up in her head if she hadn’t seen Cheryl’s lips form them. “That’s what I was going to say earlier. I don’t… I don’t know if you were waiting for me to be ready or something, but I want you so bad, Toni.”

Toni softened, leaning in to press a feathery kiss to her girlfriend’s swollen lips. “Well, you’ll be happy to know,” Toni began as she pulled back again, “that I want you pretty fucking bad, too.”

“And you’ve definitely done enough waiting,” Cheryl murmured, wrapping her arms tighter around the shorter girl.

“Sweets is working until like two in the morning,” Toni heard herself saying. “You wanna get out of here?” Cheryl was nodding before Toni had even finished the question.

They pulled away from the wall and rounded the corner to go back through the door, but suddenly Veronica was calling to them. “Hey, losers! Get over here for a selfie!” Toni and Cheryl shared a look, and then they started across the roof through the cold toward their friends.

“One selfie, then Cher and I are headed out,” Toni said.

“Already?” Betty asked with a frown. “Nothing bad happened, right?”

“Nope,” Cheryl assured her, “we just… have other plans for the night.”

Veronica gave Toni a wide eyed gaze demanding explanation, and Toni looked at her girlfriend pointedly. “Subtle, babe.”

They all squished together and smiled for Veronica’s Snapchat selfie. “Alright, thanks besties!” she exclaimed. “You two have a fun night. Text when you’re home safe.”

“You too,” Toni told Veronica, who nodded.

“Duh.”

“See you guys!”

Toni and Cheryl ended up on the sidewalk outside of the apartment, Toni pulling up maps on her phone to try and figure out the fastest way to get back to her apartment. She had a feeling that they were close enough that the subway would be ridiculous, and possibly even close enough that paying for a cab would be just a hassle.

As she waited for her map to load, she realized that Cheryl was shivering. She had no jacket over her sleeveless dress, and Toni frowned. She immediately shrugged off her leather jacket, and Cheryl opened her mouth to protest. “Cheryl, take my jacket.” The redhead sighed, giving in and sliding her arms through Toni’s leather jacket. Toni untied her flannel from her waist and tugged it over herself. “See, that’s what the flannel is for.”

“Sure it is,” Cheryl murmured.

“Okay, we should be able to walk,” Toni told her girlfriend, looking down at her phone. “If that’s okay with you?”

“Yeah, that’s fine,” Cheryl agreed. “Can we grab food, though?”

So on their walk back to Toni’s apartment, they stopped at a little pizza place that they passed, each buying two slices of their preferred pizzas. The cold stopped them from eating outside, though, so they clasped hands and hurried back to Toni’s apartment.

As soon as they were there, they took off their jackets and Toni grabbed a spare blanket from her closet, bringing it out to the living room, where Cheryl had already settled in, their pizza to-go boxes sitting on the coffee table. Cheryl had also slid her long, red boots off, and had crossed her legs in front of her.

“Ugh, you’re so fucking cute,” Toni heard herself mutter, joining her girlfriend on the couch after sliding her own shoes off, and spreading the blanket over the both of them before they grabbed their food.

“Well, thank you, but why do you have to say it in that grumpy tone?” Cheryl asked with a laugh, grabbing her first slice of pizza and taking a bite.

Toni smiled at the redhead. “I don’t know how you can be so sexy and adorable at the same time,” she said simply, taking a bite of her slice as well. Cheryl rolled her eyes at the follow up compliment, but Toni caught the blush on her cheeks. As soon as Toni swallowed her bite, she grinned and said, “Damn, I’m lucky.”

“Shut up,” Cheryl mumbled shyly, her blush deepening.

“Oh my goodness, Cheryl ‘Bombshell’ Blossom is getting all shy!” Toni exclaimed teasingly.

“Eat your pizza, Cha-Cha.”

Toni bit back her smile and followed her girlfriend’s orders. They sat in a peaceful silence as they both ate their slices of pizza. Once they were done, Toni got up and threw away their trash, and when she turned back to the living room, Cheryl had disappeared. “Cher?” she called, heading toward her bedroom. “Babe?”

She stopped dead in her tracks when she got to her bedroom’s threshold. Cheryl was facing the bed, but her red dress was sitting pooled at her feet, leaving her in her high waisted leggings and a what looked from the back to be a  _ very _ lacy, red bra.

“Fuck,” Toni heard herself murmur.

Cheryl turned around, revealing the front of that heavenly bra. It was just as lacy from the front, cupping those round boobs and forming cleavage that Toni had caught herself staring at dozens of times before. Cheryl was biting down on her lower lip, looking like maybe she was nervous. Toni had no idea why she would be. “I believe you promised to make up for Wednesday to me, TT.”

“Mm, I do remember saying that,” Toni agreed, taking a hesitant step toward her girlfriend.

Cheryl seemed to sense her hesitation, and she let out a huff. “Toni. I told you, I  _ want _ you. I want  _ you _ . Please don’t hesitate to want me back.”

“Oh trust me, that is not what I’m hesitating to do,” Toni promised, finally stepping closer and closing the distance between them. “I just… you’re a fucking masterpiece, Cheryl.”

“Show, Toni, don’t tell,” Cheryl murmured, one of her hands grabbing the back of Toni’s neck gently and pulling her toward her for a kiss. Toni did her best to snap herself out of her reverie over how beautiful her girlfriend was, and she brought her hands to Cheryl’s bare waist, feeling the soft, pale skin underneath her fingertips. She pushed Cheryl backwards, toward the bed, until the redhead gave in and lowered herself onto it. Toni pulled her lips away from Cheryl’s.

“Lay down,” she said lowly, and Cheryl scooted backwards a little before falling back to rest her head on Toni’s pillows. Toni immediately climbed on top of her, straddling her hips and leaning down to join their lips again. Her hands splayed across Cheryl’s abdomen, pressing the pads of her fingers into Cheryl’s surprisingly toned stomach.

Cheryl let out a little whine into Toni’s lips, and the pink haired girl pulled her lower lip in between her teeth, tugging it slightly before soothing it with her tongue. “Toni,” Cheryl whimpered. Toni said nothing in response, instead stretching her body out so that she wasn’t straddling her girlfriend anymore. Instead, she used one arm to prop herself up as her legs slid down Cheryl’s, one of them fitting its way in between two paler thighs. Cheryl let out a groan at that, and Toni shift her lips onto her neck.

She heard Cheryl’s breathing getting more and more rapid, and her moans began coming more and more frequently. It was so freeing to know that Toni could tease Cheryl without feeling bad, since she would finally be providing her girlfriend with relief at the end of it. She couldn’t believe how long she’d wanted to do this for, and that she was finally going to be touching the most beautiful and sexy woman she had ever laid her eyes on.

Toni’s free hand trailed from Cheryl’s flat stomach up to her left, bra enclosed boob, squeezing around the thin, lazy bra. “Oh god, TT,” Cheryl groaned.

“Feels good?”

“Ugh,” Cheryl groaned again, “would feel even better if you just took it off.”

Toni lifted herself slightly, biting down on her lip as she wrapped her arm underneath Cheryl, looking for the bra clasp. She found it pretty easily, and with one hand, unclasped it. She then, very gingerly, took the undergarment off of her girlfriend, her mouth going completely dry when she saw Cheryl’s perfect boobs, her nipples erect. “ _ Fuck _ , Cher. Every time I think you couldn’t possibly get more beautiful…”

“Touch them,” Cheryl pleaded, her thighs clamping around Toni’s. “Please, TT, I want your hands on me.”

Toni did as her girlfriend said, but she took her time, gently massaging both breasts as a whole before approaching her nipple. If Cheryl was already this worked up, Toni was curious to see how quickly she could get her girlfriend to beg. She wouldn’t tease forever, though, not for her first time. She wanted this to be memorable,  _ perfect _ .

She finally lowered herself on Cheryl’s body and took one of those perky nipples into her mouth, biting down on it gently before sucking her lips around it. “Oh my—” Cheryl’s voice was torn from her throat as Toni grinded her thigh up to Cheryl’s center. Toni continued giving ample attention to her girlfriend’s beautiful boobs, and Cheryl started rocking her hips into Toni’s thigh.

Toni pulled herself up suddenly, coming up to straddle Cheryl again, and dark eyes opened in protest as Cheryl whined. “What are you doing?”

“This will be easier if I’m in less clothes,” Toni stated, lifting a teasing eyebrow. “Unless you’d rather I kept them all on?”

“No, no, please, don’t stop on my account,” Cheryl hurried out. Toni tore off her mesh top and then wiggled out of her jeans, tossing both items of clothing off of her bed and leaving her in only her sleek, black bra and matching black panties. Cheryl’s hands immediately fell to Toni’s exposed thighs, squeezing them firmly. “You’re so beautiful, TT.”

“Well, then that makes two of us,” Toni murmured, leaning back down to join their lips. She didn’t bring her thigh back in between Cheryl’s, and she could tell it was frustrating the redhead, whose hips bucked up against where Toni was straddling her. Toni’s hands stroked the smooth skin everywhere underneath her, dancing over Cheryl’s nipples and down to her bellybutton. She brought them to the edge of Cheryl’s leggings as her lips pressed hot kisses along Cheryl’s jaw, stopping by her ear. She whispered in a low and raspy voice, “Can I take these off?”

“Yes,” Cheryl gasped out, and Toni did just that, peeling the thick leggings off of her girlfriend’s legs. She shifted her body down as she pulled them completely off of Cheryl, and from her new position, she looked up to take in almost all of her girlfriend. She was wearing lacy, red panties, but other than that, she was completely exposed to Toni. Her fiery hair contrasted dramatically against Toni’s white sheets, and even her own unmarked pale skin. Toni took in the beautiful, gentle curve of her hips, the shape of her thighs. “Toni…”

“Sorry, babe,” Toni said, pressing her hands into the sides of Cheryl’s thighs. “Just taking in the view.”

“You’re such an adorable sap, TT,” Cheryl said softly, “but I really need you to touch me.” Her pupils were blown, darkening her already dark eyes, and Toni started pressing hot kisses to the insides of Cheryl’s thighs. As she approached Cheryl’s underwear, she danced her fingers over the lace of them, dangerously close to Cheryl’s center. “Take them off, Toni.”

“Cher… are you su—”

“Toni Topaz, I swear if you ask me if I’m sure about something that I’ve already told you one more time—”

That shut Toni up, a small smirk coming to her face as she gripped the red lace and pulled them all the way down in one swift motion. Cheryl was the one to give them the final kick off of the bed, and Toni looked back to Cheryl’s center, moaning. She scooted up a little, settling herself in between Cheryl’s thighs, looking up at her girlfriend, who was biting on her lip and waiting expectantly. “Tell me you want me, Cher,” Toni commanded, feeling Cheryl tighten her thighs’ grip on Toni.

“TT…”

Toni repeated, a little more firmly, “Tell me, baby.”

“I want you, Toni,” Cheryl moaned out. “I want you to fuck me,  _ please _ .”

Toni felt heat pooling in between her own legs as she moaned, her hands reaching around to grip Cheryl’s ass as she brought her mouth to her clit, pressing an experimental kiss just above it. Cheryl groaned, and Toni moved a little lower, pressing her tongue gently through Cheryl’s folds and tasting her wetness—and  _ man _ was she wet. “Holy fuck, Cheryl,” Toni moaned, “you’re so fucking wet.”

“You make me wet, Toni,” Cheryl insisted. “ _ God _ , I’ve been  _ dying _ all week. Especially after Wednesday, oh my god. I’m tired of waiting, TT.”

Toni smirked, bringing her mouth back down, going straight for Cheryl’s clit now, sucking on it slowly at first as she felt Cheryl’s body react, and heard a moan escape her lips. Suddenly, long fingers were tangling in her hair, and Toni released her own moan at the feeling of them tugging on it. The vibrations from the sound made Cheryl shake, and her hips bucked slightly. Toni squeezed Cheryl’s ass, pressing her back down onto the bed gently.

She mostly gave up on teasing at this point, her tongue returning to Cheryl’s folds, and her right hand left Cheryl’s ass to join her mouth at her core. As her tongue teased between Cheryl’s opening and her clit, tasting the goodness that was Cheryl Blossom, her fingers began to circle around her core. Cheryl had essentially been begging this whole time, but Toni wanted to see if she could get one more from her girlfriend as she slowly teased her one last time.

“Oh my god, Toni,” Cheryl gasped, “please fuck me already,  _ please _ .” Perfect. Toni slid one finger inside Cheryl to start, feeling her inner walls reacting to the shift. “ _ More _ , Toni.” Toni obeyed, adding a second finger and beginning to push them both in and out with a slow rhythm as her teeth scraped gently over Cheryl’s clit, causing the woman to let out a shaky moan. She was panting now, too, and both of these sounds were motivating Toni to continue.

Toni slowly began to pick up her pace, feeling Cheryl tightening around her fingers as the redhead began to thrust her hips down against her fingers. Toni moved her mouth from Cheryl’s clit as she looked up to see her girlfriend. Her eyes were squeezed so tightly shut, and the hand that wasn’t buried in Toni’s hair was squeezing her own nipple. Toni let out a moan, abruptly switching her pace to one that was much faster and a bit more aggressive. Her girlfriend was  _ so _ sexy. “Are you close, baby?”

“S-So, close, Toni,” Cheryl moaned out. Toni slowed her movements again suddenly, and Cheryl whimpered. “Please, TT, faster.”

“Tell me you’re mine.”

“I’m yours, Toni, I’m all yours. Please, Toni,” Cheryl begged, and Toni resumed the faster pace. Cheryl was gasping and panting, moans escaping every few seconds as Toni drove her up. She returned her lips to her clit, flattening her tongue against it and then sucking it intermittently. “Oh my— _ fuck _ Toni! I’m so close, Toni, p-please, I-I’m gonna cum!”

And then it happened, and Toni felt warm wetness against her fingers, her lips moving down to taste even more of her girlfriend. She slowed the pace of her fingers as she let Cheryl ride out her orgasm, her body shaking a little as her hand’s grip in Toni’s hair loosened.

Toni gently pulled her fingers from Cheryl, sucking them clean quickly. She pressed a few kisses to the tops of Cheryl’s thigh, effectively wiping her mouth clean of Cheryl’s wetness, and then trailed more fluttery kisses up Cheryl’s whole body. She relaxed her full weight on Cheryl once she was level with her, pressing a soft kiss to those beautifully full lips.

“How was that, baby?”

“So good, TT,” Cheryl whispered breathlessly. “Worth the wait.”

“You’re telling  _ me _ ,” Toni teased.

Cheryl hummed, her hands wrapping around to Toni’s lower back. Then they moved in two different directions, on landing on Toni’s covered ass, and one grabbing the back of her bra. “Can we take these off?” Toni rolled off of Cheryl, landing in the cool space next to her, and wiggled out of her panties before unclasping and tossing away her bra. She then turned onto her side to face the redhead, who was lying on her side, taking her in. “Wow. I  _ knew _ I had the hottest girlfriend.”

“I’m pretty sure that  _ I _ have the hottest girlfriend, but…”

“I think we’re maybe tied, TT,” Cheryl told her with a smirk.

“Wait, is this Cheryl Bombshell willing to share her title as the hottest woman in the world?”

“Only for you.” Toni pressed closer to her girlfriend, draping her arm over her waist. “Toni…”

“Yeah, beautiful?”

“I want to… I want to make you feel good.”

Toni rubbed invisible circles against Cheryl’s lower back as she smiled softly. “I know, babe, but you don’t have to tonight. We have all the time in the world.”

“But—”

“Plus,” Toni interrupted, grabbing Cheryl’s right hand and tapping the pads of her fingers over her girlfriend’s nails, “some of these might have to come off before we go there. They’re hot when you’re grabbing my hair or holding onto me, but they won’t be so hot down there.”

“Fine, not tonight then,” Cheryl gave in. “But as I told you earlier, I am  _ not _ a pillow princess.”

“I believe you, beautiful,” Toni promised, wrapping her arm tighter around the redhead. “Sometimes I still can’t believe that you’re mine, Cher.”

“Well believe it, TT, because not only am I yours, but you’re mine, and I wouldn’t want you to forget that.”

“Trust me, I could never forget it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you liked this chapter ;D This next week is going to be a bit busy for me, because I am homeeeee at my parents' for break! But 2/7 of the days I'll be at my girlfriend's place and another 2/7 of them my girlfriend will be at my place lol. But I will not let that stop me from updating on Thanksgiving to prove how thankful for you all that I am XD Anyway, I hope you all are having a lovely weekend. I will see you all on THURSDAY, I promise!! <3 xx


	13. Falling So Hard

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Toni's feelings for Cheryl are growing!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey lovelies!! Happy Thanksgiving (barely still for most Americans and not really for anyone on the east coast but it's fine lol)! I had a busy day full of food, hanging out with most of my family and my girlfriend, and then I watched a lot of TV lol. My back's kind of been killing me which sucks, so I took a hot bath and gonna sleep soon and hope that it helps. But anyway! Hearing all about me isn't what you're here for! You're hear for the 3rd to last chapter of this story! Chapter 13! Enjoy lovelies!!xx

**** Toni’s eyes fluttered open in the still dark room, wondering how early it was if there was hardly any light trickling in through her window. Her next thought was why she would ever have woken this early, and then she realized that it was because of a lack of a presence in bed with her. Groaning, she sat up, rubbing her eyes and looking around her room, finding no Cheryl. 

But her door opened suddenly and the redhead slipped in, and Toni felt her eyes widen as she realized that her girlfriend was wearing nothing other than one of Toni’s oversized t-shirts. “Ugh, I didn’t want to wake you,” Cheryl said with a sigh. “It’s really early. I woke up and couldn’t fall back asleep.” She closed the bedroom door and came over to rejoin Toni in bed. 

“I think it’s my subconscious waking me up,” Toni murmured, wrapping her arms around Cheryl as soon as she was back under the covers. “When you’re here, it wants you to stay here, so it wakes me up to lemme know you disappeared.” 

Cheryl laughed lightly. “Don’t worry, I don’t plan on disappearing, as long as  _ you _ don’t.” 

“I promise I don’t either,” Toni said with a little smile. “What woke you up?” 

“I don’t know,” Cheryl admitted, “although I did have to pee, so maybe it was that.” Cheryl started scratching her fingertips across Toni’s bare back gently, and Toni furrowed her eyebrows as she realized that two of the fingernails were a lot less pointy than they’d been a few hours before. 

She pulled away from her cuddly position with Cheryl, and the redhead furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. But as Toni reached for her hand, Cheryl bit down on her lower lip. Sure enough, Cheryl’s middle and pointer fingernails on her right hand had been very cleanly trimmed down. 

“I may have spotted your nail clippers while I was in the bathroom,” Cheryl admitted shyly. 

“You’re too much, Cher,” Toni said with a little laugh, wrapping her girlfriend up in her arms again. “Go back to sleep, it’s too early.” 

“I’ll do my best.” 

* * *

The second time Toni woke up, there was light trickling into the room, and Cheryl was, oddly, still asleep. Toni smirked a little, deciding that the reasoning was a mix between the fact that she’d been unable to sleep earlier, and probably also the sex. But she and Cheryl had only had one round the night before, and Toni was sure there would be more. She wasn’t usually one to give a girl just one orgasm in a night, but they’d both passed out pretty quickly the night before.

Toni felt her bladder complaining suddenly, and she let out a little frustrated breath before very carefully wiggling out from under her covers, trying not to disturb Cheryl. She then grabbed some underwear and a t-shirt, hoping that Sweet Pea wasn’t up and about the apartment yet. Thankfully, as she slipped out of her bedroom and across the hall to the bathroom, she didn’t see her roommate. 

She quickly used the bathroom, and then brushed her teeth and washed her face as well. Then she hurried back into her room, and was relieved to see that Cheryl was still sleeping peacefully. Leaving her shirt on, Toni tugged her underwear off again and climbed back into bed, taking less care to not wake up her girlfriend, because she was already planning on doing so. 

She sidled up close to Cheryl, tangling her legs with pale ones, and started pressing soft little kisses to Cheryl’s neck, then her cheeks, back down to her neck, across her collarbone. Cheryl started to stir, making a small noise as she furrowed her eyebrows. Toni let one of her kisses linger against Cheryl’s pulse point, and then she pulled away enough to see Cheryl’s face fully. Beautiful brown eyes had opened already, and they settled their gaze contently on Toni. “Good morning,” Toni whispered, resting her hand on Cheryl’s abdomen, underneath the t-shirt she was wearing. 

“Mm, it is,” Cheryl agreed. “It’s a pity I’m usually awake before you, because waking up to you already being awake seems like such a rewarding experience.” Toni grinned, and Cheryl smiled. “And you try and claim that you aren’t cute.” 

“I’m not cute, I’m sexy, and a badass, but not  _ cute _ ,” Toni insisted. 

Cheryl chuckled. “Right.” 

Toni narrowed her eyes at her girlfriend, sitting up suddenly and settling on top of Cheryl, her bare thigh coming to Cheryl’s bare center. Warm, brown eyes darkened immediately as Cheryl took in a sharp breath. “Care to change your stance, Blossom?” 

Cheryl’s chest rose and fell quickly at the sudden contact Toni had with her sensitive core, but the redhead gave her a challenging look. “Still the cutest, TT.” 

“Mm, you’re gonna pay for that, babe,” Toni whispered lowly, pressing her thigh against the wetness she felt starting to pool between Cheryl’s thighs. 

“Make me pay, then, I won’t take it back.” 

“We’ll see about that.” Toni’s right hand found Cheryl’s right boob, grazing her fingertips over her nipple teasingly. Cheryl arched her back, and Toni answered the movement by rubbing her thigh against her girlfriend, who let out a deep, throaty moan. She attached her lips to Cheryl’s neck, which she knew by now would drive the redhead crazy, and pinched her nipple. 

“Oh—Toni,” Cheryl gasped out, her back arching again. 

Toni finally dropped her hand down in between Cheryl’s thighs, using her own thigh to now spread Cheryl’s legs as her fingers came in very abrupt contact with Cheryl’s center. She skipped past teasing and being gentle, and began driving her girlfriend up as quickly as she could. Cheryl’s gasps and moans were coming sporadically, and Toni could feel when she was close. 

And right when she knew she could give Cheryl her release, she froze her hand’s movements, causing Cheryl to let out a little cry. “Toni, please don’t stop, I’m so close.” 

“Say that I’m a badass.” 

“Oh my god, Toni, are you serious?” Cheryl groaned, trying to thrust her hips down to give herself some relief. “Fine, you’re a badass, TT, now  _ please _ make me cum!” Toni finally resumed her actions, and in a matter of minutes, Cheryl was crying out in ecstasy. She then relaxed onto the damp sheets, her chest rising and falling underneath Toni’s t-shirt quickly. Toni gently pulled her hand out from between Cheryl’s thighs, trailing her wet fingers up the redhead’s midsection. Cheryl connected her gaze with Toni’s. “You’re ridiculous, Toni.” She smirked suddenly. “My ridiculous,  _ adorable _ , and  _ so cute _ badass.” 

Toni huffed. “I hate you.” 

“Yeah, that’s definitely what this whole morning has shown me,” Cheryl deadpanned, rolling her eyes. “Anyway, I’ll let that comment slide, because I know how sensitive you are over your cuteness. And on a different note,  _ ma chérie _ , I do believe that it’s your turn.” 

Cheryl was suddenly straddling Toni, and it did actually really surprise Toni, who looked up at her with curious eyes. “If you’re s—” 

“TT, what did I say about that phrase last night?” Cheryl asked, a little bit of frustration in her voice. Toni bit down on her lower lip, and Cheryl let out a sigh, her expression turning serious but still soft. “Trust me, Toni. I don’t say or do things unless I’m sure about them, okay? You should know that about me. You’re the one who’s told me how much you admire that I’m so dedicated and passionate. You think I’m that way because I don’t know what I want and what I feel?” Toni shook her head. “Then please, just trust me. Trust how I say that I feel. Please.” 

“I do, really,” Toni promised. “I’m sorry.” 

“Don’t apologize,” Cheryl insisted with a shake of her head, “that’s not what I want. I just want you to stop doubting whether or not I’m sure that I want to  _ touch you _ and  _ taste you _ when I’m literally about to do it.” 

The words caused heat to gather between her legs. Toni moved her hands so that they rested on Cheryl’s thighs, and she nodded. “Okay.” Cheryl dipped down and pressed her lips softly to Toni’s, and the pink haired girl let her lead the kiss. She forced herself to give full control over to Cheryl, whose hands were tugging Toni’s t-shirt upwards. Their lips parted so she could fully remove it, and then their kiss resumed. Cheryl’s hands found Toni’s boobs, and Toni felt her body reacting to Cheryl instinctually, her back arching up to press her chest into Cheryl’s grip. 

She felt herself getting absolutely lost in the feeling of Cheryl’s lips, teeth and tongue on hers, and those roaming hands with their sharp nails scratching gently across her skin. So much so that when Cheryl suddenly pulled their lips apart, she was completely confused. That is, until Cheryl’s lips came to land in the valley between Toni’s breasts, sucking a little bruise there so suddenly, and it made Toni absolutely soaked. “Oh my god, Cher,” she moaned. 

Cheryl continued her path downward, sucking and kissing along Toni’s skin the whole way, her left hand staying up to play with Toni’s nipple. When Cheryl got low enough, both of her hands came to Toni’s thighs, gently pushing them apart. Toni looked down at her girlfriend, who was biting down on her lower lip. Toni could read the nervousness in her eyes. 

“Babe,” she said softly, drawing Cheryl’s gaze, “it’s normal to be nervous. But I promise, even if you do something that doesn’t feel good, I’ll tell you and it won’t be a big deal.” Cheryl nodded slowly, looking back down at Toni’s core. Then, taking in a breath, she leaned down, her lips coming to meet Toni’s lower ones. Toni felt the slight hesitance in Cheryl’s motions, but that didn’t change how satisfying it did feel. Her tongue poked at Toni’s clit experimentally, and Toni let out a moan. 

That seemed to encourage Cheryl, and she wrapped her lips around Toni’s clit, sucking gently. Toni’s breathing had picked up considerably, and she hugged Cheryl’s head with her thighs as she looked down at the head of fiery hair that was between them. Cheryl pushed some of that beautiful hair out of her way as she lowered her tongue back to Toni’s lips, and suddenly, her fingers – with the newly trimmed fingernails – were circling Toni’s entrance. 

“Please, Cher,” Toni heard herself pleading, desperate to be filled by her girlfriend. 

Cheryl didn’t have to be asked twice, sliding her fingers inside Toni gingerly. Toni groaned, her hips bucking a little. Cheryl used her left hand to keep them still as her fingers began to pump in and out of the pink haired girl, increasing speed slowly. Her tongue returned to Toni’s clit, and Toni felt herself coming undone. The quickness with which she was climbing to climax was probably due mostly to how horny she’d been for Cheryl over the past weeks, but Cheryl definitely seemed more experienced than she actually was in the art of pleasing. 

“Oh god, I’m so close, Cher,” Toni moaned, when there was suddenly a loud knock on their door. 

“I made breakfast for you sex fiends,” they heart Sweet Pea call, and Cheryl froze, pulling her mouth away from Toni’s center as her fingers stilled. 

“ _ Fuck _ , Cher, please don’t stop,” Toni pleaded, so close now. 

Cheryl looked up at her girlfriend, and Toni gave her a pleading look. “Fine, but you better be quiet.” 

“Deal,” Toni promised, and Cheryl returned to her task. Just a minute later, Toni was moaning into the back of her wrist, coming completely undone at Cheryl’s hands.  

A few moments later, Cheryl was cuddling up next to her. “Was that good?” 

“So good, baby,” Toni assured her. “And just for the record, didn’t doubt you for a second on whether or not it would be.” 

Cheryl smiled softly. 

“Also, don’t worry about Sweet Pea. He couldn’t have heard very much,” Toni promised Cheryl. Whether or not that was true, she wasn’t entirely sure, but it made Cheryl relax a little, and that was what counted. “You wanna shower first?” 

“Sure, TT,” Cheryl agreed, climbing out of the bed a little begrudgingly. “What time do you work today?” 

“Two,” Toni answered with a frown, “until six. But then I’m free… if you want to do something.” 

“I was thinking I could take you out to dinner,” Cheryl suggested, biting on her lower lip as she looked down at the bed, where Toni was laying and staring up at her. 

“I’d love that.” 

Cheryl smiled brightly. “Excellent.” 

* * *

**Cher <3 – Good morning, TT! I didn’t sleep very well last night, it sucks trying to sleep alone after sleeping in bed with you two nights in a row.**

**TT <3 – Ugh same. You should’ve just stayed over again ;)**

**Cher <3 – Toni, you just woke up and I just got out of my first class. If I had stayed over, I would have missed it.**

**TT <3 – Pft, what makes you think that?**

**Cher <3 – Uh, the fact that I always sleep later when I’m in bed with you, and also even if I had been up and tried to leave, you would’ve gotten whiney.**

**TT <3 – Um, I resent that implication. I do not get whiney.**

**Cher <3 – Okay, TT, whatever you say..**

Toni was laying in bed, not wanting to get up for her class, but she knew that she needed to. Sighing, she pulled herself out of her bed and started getting ready. Her bedsheets were freshly changed after last night, considering how much sex had been had in them the previous two days, they’d desperately needed to be washed. After her dinner out with Cheryl on Saturday, they’d stopped by the dorms so the redhead could grab an overnight bag and a change of her own clothes, and then they’d gone back to Toni’s. They’d started the night watching a movie, and finished it tumbling around in the sheets for quite a long while. And they’d spent a little bit of Sunday like that as well. 

Toni couldn’t be happier with how things were going with Cheryl. If someone had told her a few months before that she would end up entering an exclusive relationship with the woman she’d basically been obsessively crushing on for a year, she would’ve never believed them. But now she  _ was _ , and she was quickly making a new realization too. 

She was falling  _ so hard _ for Cheryl Blossom. 

Perhaps that was evident in how she’d let Cheryl change her name in her phone: 

_ “Is my name in your phone still Cheryl Bombshell?” Cheryl wondered. They were lounging across Toni’s bed, the pink haired girl doing some homework. Cheryl had been working on something on her laptop, which she’d brought over in her overnight bag the night before, but she’d closed the device and was now just looking up at the ceiling. _

_ “It’s been just Bombshell for a while now,” Toni answered, looking at her girlfriend curiously. “Why?” _

_ “Can I see your phone?” _

_ Toni grabbed her phone and handed it to Cheryl after unlocking it. “What are you gonna do?” _

_ “I’m gonna change it to something more sappy.” _

_ “Why?” _

_ “Because I know you’re a secret sap. And plus, I added a heart next to your name in my phone, so yours needs to be more sappy.” _

_ “What’s wrong with Bombshell?” _

_ “I just told you, it’s not sappy enough.” _

_ “You’re such a dork, Cher.” _

_ Cheryl tapped away on Toni’s phone, and then handed it back to her. Her new contact name was now “Cher <3,” and to be honest, it made Toni smile. “I told you,” Cheryl said in a tone of mock accusation, “you’re a sap. You love it with the heart.” _

_ “Bombshell with a heart could’ve worked too.” _

_ “Whatever, TT, keep telling yourself that you’re not an adorable sap.” _

Toni had specifically realized how badly she was falling the night before, when Cheryl had insisted that she go back to the dorms for the night. The longing that Toni had felt all night, tossing and turning, triggered the thought. She felt so strongly for Cheryl, and she had for such a long time, but it was different now. It wasn’t a secret, and it didn’t have to be, and she could actually allow her feelings to grow rather than repeatedly stifle them. She almost didn’t know how to handle it, but she figured that the first step was to realize that yes, she was easily falling in love with Cheryl. And it didn’t even scare her. 

She hadn’t ever been in love before. The most serious relationship she’d ever been in was with Jennifer – the girl who she’d dated during her senior year. Toni hadn’t ever gotten close to considering that she might be falling in love with her, and since that relationship, Toni had only had a few short term flings or one to two night stands. It hadn’t ever really bothered her, because getting in a relationship with someone would’ve required her to get over her feelings for Cheryl first, and as much as she’d tried, she’d never been able to. 

So now, being in a relationship that was so serious and so important to her all of the sudden, it felt  _ magical _ , but it should’ve also been terrifying. But it wasn’t, because this was Cheryl Blossom, and everything about Cheryl had always felt like magic. If there was anyone that Toni could fall in love with, it was Cheryl. 

But she wouldn’t tell Cheryl until she was completely sure of her feelings, because it was so soon in their relationship, and the last thing she wanted was to scare her. 

That didn’t mean she was going to keep her feelings completely bottled inside, though. 

**Tiny Toni – I’m coming over right after my last class, be free pleeeease! Need best friend talk time!**

**V-Ronnie – Is something wrong?? Or are you finally going to dish about you and Cheryl FINALLY having sex???**

**Tiny Toni – Idk why you have to say finally like that, we’ve only been dating for a few weeks.**

**Tiny Toni – Nothing is wrong, I just need to talk to my best female friend okkkk**

**V-Ronnie – Okay, T! I’ll be free. You’re lucky I love you!**

**Tiny Toni – Great, see you then!**

And sure enough, right after Toni got out of class, she hurried toward the dorms. She was kind of hoping that Cheryl wouldn’t be there and see her, because she wouldn’t know how to tell the redhead that she just needed to talk to Veronica about something without her. So if she  _ did _ run into Cheryl, she would have to make up some excuse for why she was there, and she’d have to have her best friend talk with Veronica later. 

But she didn’t run into her girlfriend at all in the dorms, and she made it to Veronica’s door with no complications. When Veronica let her in, she was looking at her with excitement. “Alright, Tiny, you better start spilling about Friday! You barely texted me all weekend!” 

Toni slipped off her shoes and sat on Veronica’s bed, folding her legs in front of her. “It was amazing,” Toni assured her. “But I’m not giving you a play by play, V.” 

“Well good, I don’t want one. But so, is Cheryl  _ really _ a bottom, or what?” 

Toni’s mouth opened, but she definitely didn’t feel like she owed Veronica any sort of answer to this question. The answer seemed to be a resounding yes, judging by how many times Toni had topped Cheryl versus the opposite. But Cheryl was definitely good at unraveling Toni, and even in just a weekend, they’d seemed to have found a balance that worked for them. “I’m not answering that,” is all Toni actually said though. 

“Ugh, Toni!” Veronica huffed. “Fine, I didn’t want to do this, but…” 

She grabbed her phone, dialing someone suddenly. “Wait, Ronnie, who are you—” 

“Hey, Sweets!” Veronica said as the phone call was answered. 

“Veronica? Everything okay?” 

“Oh, everything is great! Just calling to ask if you heard Toni and Cheryl at all this weekend—you know, getting down and dirty—and if you could discern who was topping?” 

“Oh my god, Veronica, why do you even care?” 

“It’s for science, Sweet Pea,” Veronica insisted. 

“Sweet Pea, if you say  _ anything _ , I’ll kill you,” Toni said, and she heard her best friend laugh on the other side of the phone. 

“Sorry, Ronnie, you heard her. I’ve got work, I’ll see you later, Tiny.” 

“Bye, Sweets!” Toni called back, a proud smirk on her face. Veronica was glaring at the phone, as though it would somehow project her glare on Sweet Pea. 

“Ugh, I’ll find out eventually.” 

“You’re crazy. Anyway, Ronnie, there’s something I wanted to actually talk to you about.” 

“Oh shit, yeah of course. Talk away, bestie!” 

Toni took in a breath. “So… I’m like super crazy fast falling in love with Cheryl and I don’t know how to deal with it.” 

“Deal with it?” Veronica asked in confusion. “What do you mean?” 

“Like, I’m not going to tell her until I  _ am _ sure that I’m in love with her. But… I’ve never been in love Veronica, I should be  _ terrified _ right now. But I’m not.” 

“Toni, that’s because you already love her,” Veronica stated matter-of-factly. Toni opened her mouth to protest, but the dark haired girl continued before she could. “I’m not saying you’re already in love with her, I’m just saying… she’s been your friend who you’ve cared about a lot for a while now, you obviously love her to some extent. And when given the opportunity, feelings like that can grow into being  _ in love _ pretty quickly.” 

“How would you know that?” 

Veronica shrugged. “I read a lot of articles about love and shit like that. Plus, feelings are weird, Toni. There’s not always something you can do to ‘deal with’ them. You just let them do what they’re gonna do. And when you figure that out, you tell the person you’re feeling them for.” 

“But what if that’s soon? What if I realize that I love her, and I tell her, and she thinks it’s way too early?” 

“Think about it, Toni,” Veronica said softly, “your girl found out that you’d been crushing on her for over a year, and that didn’t change the way she looked at you at all. If you told her you were in love with her, she probably wouldn’t even be that surprised, all things considered. Feelings don’t always have to be mutual for them to be valid, and even if she can’t say it back to you right away, it doesn’t mean that it won’t happen. All you can do, Toni, is make sure that you’re honest with your girlfriend.” 

Toni nodded slowly. “I guess you’re right. I just… I’m not scared of feeling this way, I’m just so scared of… losing it. And losing her. I’ve never felt this strongly for anyone, Ronnie, and I’ve never felt so  _ wanted _ by someone.” 

“Have you told her that? It might make it easier for you to warm up to the idea of bringing in the L word if you tell her how you’re feeling without dropping something like ‘falling in love,’ if you’re really worried that’ll scare her.” 

“That’s a good point…” 

“I’m telling you, love articles are the key.” 

Toni lifted an eyebrow. “Sure, Ronnie…” Veronica’s phone buzzed suddenly, and she grabbed it immediately. 

“Ooh, Betty wants to grab dinner. You wanna come with? Invite Cheryl.” 

“Sure, I guess,” Toni agreed, reaching for her phone. “I don’t know if she’s busy, though.” 

**TT <3 – Wanna go on a double date with B and V? Or are you busy tonight?**

**Cher <3 – Not busy, let’s do it! Plus you work tomorrow, correct?**

**TT <3 – Correct**

**Cher <3 – Then yes definitely, if I don’t get to see you tomorrow, I NEED to see you today.**

**TT <3 – Great, you at the dorm?**

**Cher <3 – Yep!**

**TT <3 – V and I will come scoop you up in a few then :)**

**Cher <3 – Can’t wait!**

“Okay, Cher and I are in,” Toni told Veronica, but when she looked up, Veronica’s dark eyes were trained on Toni’s message screen. “Hey, what gives?” 

“That’s so cute! Her name in your phone has a little heart!” 

“Oh my god.  _ She _ did that. Her name in my phone used to be Bombshell.” 

“But you  _ let her _ change it, that’s seriously adorable! God, Toni, I knew you had a soft side, but damn! I’m gonna have to tell Sweet Pea later this week, he’s gonna be shook!” 

“Do you and Sweet Pea regularly communicate about me and my relationship?” Toni asked with a scoff. 

Veronica shrugged, an entirely too serious look on her face as she answered, “Sometimes.” 

“Oh my god, you two are crazy. Come on, if we’re going to go get dinner, we need to go get my girlfriend first,” Toni insisted, standing. 

“Okay, but wait. That’s everything you wanted to talk about, right? I don’t want us to stop talking if you had more you wanted to get out or talk through,” Veronica insisted. 

“No, that was it. And you definitely helped, Ronnie, so thank you.” 

“Of course. I take payments via Venmo or in the form of iced coffees.” 

“If this is a paying deal all of the sudden, you owe me a lot for that whole first month you were trying to get with Betty.” 

Veronica considered this, and then she sighed. “Alright, fine. I take payments in hugs then, get over here you secret sap.” Toni laughed, letting her best friend grab her in a tight hug. “I’m so happy for you, Toni.” 

“I’m happy for you too, V.” 

“Now let’s go bombard your girlfriend’s dorm and take her with us to meet up with my girlfriend for our adorable double date! Don’t let me forget to take a double date selfie!” 

Toni laughed as Veronica swung open her door. “Alright, V, whatever you say.” 

* * *

“Do you really have to go?” Cheryl whined, burying her face into Toni’s neck as her arms tightened around Toni’s midsection.

It was Saturday, and by Cheryl’s distressed tone, one would think that Toni was going off to war. In reality, she had a shift at work – six to eleven. It was one of her short shifts, and one that would fly by because it would be busy, but she was starting to wish she didn’t have to go. 

She’d spent the morning with Cheryl at the Manhattan Mall – and they’d dragged Sweet Pea with them at Cheryl’s insistence until he’d had to go to work. Cheryl had insisted that she needed some new winter clothes, but she’d ended up picking out way more things for Toni to try on than for herself. Toni kept telling Cheryl that she didn’t need any new clothes, and that she didn’t want Cheryl to buy her anything. But the redhead had finally gotten Toni to let her buy  _ one thing _ for her – a mesh and lace top that had little cherries embroidered on it every few inches. It was such a  _ Cheryl _ top, but Toni had put it on and actually really liked it, so she’d let Cheryl get it for her. “But that’s it,” she’d added, and Cheryl had listened. 

They had then gone to a little Japanese restaurant and had sushi and tea for lunch, before heading back to Toni’s apartment and almost immediately falling into bed together for a nap. Toni had set an alarm for an hour and a half before she had to be at work to give herself time to get out of bed with Cheryl, and she was glad she’d given herself so much time, because it was clearly very difficult to do so. 

“I do, babe, I have to work so I can have money to keep this apartment,” Toni said with a chuckle. “Sweets would kill me if I couldn’t put up my half of the rent.” 

“I know,” Cheryl murmured softly. “I know, and I admire you for supporting yourself, TT.” 

“We should just both be happy that I have any scholarship money at all, or else I’d be working like, ten hours every weekend day,” Toni told her girlfriend with a little chuckle. “Plus, you know if you wanna come back over after I get off, you are more than welcome.” 

“Can… can I just stay here?” Cheryl asked, pulling away a little to look at Toni’s face. The pink haired girl rotated a little so she was facing Cheryl. “Can I wait here for you to get back?” 

“Of course, Cher. As I’m sure you know, we don’t have a lot of food or anything, though, but you’re welcome to order something, or I can bring something back after I get off.” 

“No, don’t worry about bringing anything back,” Cheryl insisted, “I’ll order something. And Sweet Pea will get back, so I’ll get something for the two of us.” 

Toni felt her heart swell a little. “You’re so sweet, Cher.” 

Cheryl knit her eyebrows a little, clearly not understanding where exactly the comment had come from. “Yeah?” 

“Yeah.” 

Cheryl seemed to realize that her mention of getting food for her and at Sweet Pea had been the trigger for Toni to say she was sweet, and she let out a little laugh. “TT, Sweets and I were friendly before you and I started dating. And he’s your best friend… your family. Of course I want to be friends with him, and I practically live here on weekends, so the least I can do is provide food occasionally.” 

“He doesn’t feel like you owe him, though, so I just think its sweet that you think about that sorta thing,” Toni admitted quietly. “You just really blow me away most of the time, Bombshell.” 

“They didn’t give me that nickname for nothing, TT.” 

“Who gave you that nickname anyway?” Toni wondered curiously. 

Cheryl was blushing suddenly. “Um, I did?” 

“Really?” Toni asked, a grin spreading across her face. 

“Yeah. You know it’s my Instagram and Twitter handle. It’s been that way since high school,” Cheryl explained. “I mean, people have called me that. But only after I coined the term. I’ve never been a fan of  _ other _ people giving me nicknames like that.” 

“Understandable.” Toni ran her fingers through Cheryl’s beautiful hair, knowing that she needed to get out of bed soon to get ready for work. “Ugh, you’re so ridiculously beautiful.” 

“Oh shut up,” Cheryl murmured, wrapping her arms tighter around Toni and burying her face into her neck. “I mean, you’re not wrong,” Toni heard, though Cheryl’s voice was muffled, “but still. How much longer can we cuddle before you have to go?” 

“A few minutes.” They were quiet for a few moments, Toni’s mind working on overload as she thought about her conversation earlier in the week with Veronica. She needed to talk to Cheryl about how she was feeling toward her, because her feelings kept deepening. She felt them grow deeper every single day and she wanted Cheryl to know. “Hey, Cher?” 

“Yeah?” 

“I just… I want you to know how much I care about you,” Toni whispered, feeling her own hold around Cheryl tightening. “And how… I’ve never felt this before, the feelings I have for you… they’ve obviously been around for a while, but I never let them grow while we were just friends. And now that they’re growing… I just need you to know that you are so important to me.” 

Cheryl pulled back, unburying her face from Toni’s neck and meeting her gaze. She looked like she wanted to say something, but Toni wasn’t done. 

“And I’ve… I’ve been through lots of shit you know, and I’ve never felt so appreciated or wanted before, and you just… you make me feel amazing, Cheryl. And I just needed you to know.” 

Cheryl immediately closed the distance between them with a soft kiss once Toni had finished talking, and when she pulled away a second later, she was already talking. “I feel the same way about you, Toni, I’ve never felt so… connected to anyone. JJ was the closest I got to what we have, but obviously that was so much different since he was my brother. And I know you and I have been through such different situations, but I understand never feeling wanted all too well. And you make me feel wanted, too, TT. So the feeling is mutual,  _ ma chérie _ .” 

Toni let out a content sigh, pressing a soft kiss to the corner of Cheryl’s perfect, plump lips. “I love it when you say things in French.” 

“ _ Je sais, belle _ ,” Cheryl murmured. 

“I really have to get ready for work,” Toni mumbled sadly. 

“So go get ready,” Cheryl told her softly. “I’ll be here when you get back.” 

“You better be,” Toni threatened playfully, pressing a firm kiss to her favorite lips and then finally forcing herself to climb out of her bed. 

* * *

When Toni walked into her apartment later that night, the place was quiet aside from what sounded like maybe music playing in Sweet Pea’s room. She set her bag down on the kitchen counter and opened the fridge curiously, spotting a slice of pizza in a bag that wasn’t there before she left. She grabbed it and ate it quickly, before slipping into the bathroom and cleaning up for bed – washing her face, brushing her teeth, tying her hair into its usual braids, and using the bathroom. Once done, she finally pushed open the door to her bedroom, dropping her purse and her jacket lamely on the floor.

Cheryl wasn’t in the room like Toni expected, and she furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. But then she realized that one of her blankets was missing, and the room was colder than normal. Turning her head to the window, she realized it was open, and she understood. 

Grabbing her jacket again, she slipped it on and went over to her window, sticking her head out before fully climbing out. 

Cheryl was sitting on the steps, wrapped up in Toni’s blanket, and she turned to look with surprise at Toni as she came outside. “It’s after eleven already? Did you text?” 

“Yeah, I thought you were asleep or something,” Toni answered, spotting the bottle of whiskey—Toni’s favorite—sitting next to Cheryl. “Are you drinking?” 

“No, but we are going to,” Cheryl told her girlfriend with a small smile. “I got an email while you were gone saying that Nicholas—the asshole from Halloween—has officially been revoked of his enrollment at New York University.” 

“Oh my god, Cheryl, that’s awesome,” Toni said, sitting next to the redhead, on the other side of the whiskey. “I’m so glad they actually did something about him.” 

“Me too,” Cheryl said softly. 

Toni was picking up on the off tone in Cheryl’s voice now, and she frowned. “Are you okay, babe?” 

“I’m okay,” Cheryl promised, “just been thinking about that night since I got the email. I know it’s stupid, but I wish I remembered it. It’s the fact that I can’t that makes it so scary. One minute I was just dancing and having fun, and the next, I’m waking up the next morning in your room, and you looked so nervous to tell me about it and I just… I wish I remembered it. But then, obviously if I was coherent enough to remember it, I wouldn’t have been drugged, and the whole thing wouldn’t have happened at all.” 

Toni moved the bottle of whiskey out of the way, scooting next to her girlfriend and wrapping her arms around her tightly. “I can’t even imagine what it feels like, babe. But I’m here for you, and I’m glad you’re talking about it with me.” 

“You make me feel safe, TT,” Cheryl whispered, finding Toni’s hand with her own and squeezing it tightly. “I was with Sweet Pea when I got the email and he gave me a hug—which was really sweet and almost got me choked up, honestly, because I think aside from you, the only person I’ve hugged in a while was maybe Veronica—and it was nice to have someone with me at all when I got it, but I just wanted you here. Because yeah, even though it’s good news, it just made me think of that night, and I needed my TT.” 

“Well, here I am now. I’m sorry I couldn’t be here earlier.” 

“Don’t apologize, Toni, you have to work. And it’s selfish of me to want you to stay here all day with me instead of earning money.” 

“I still wish I could’ve been here for you so you didn’t have to get wrapped up in all these thoughts by yourself,” Toni told her firmly. “And if you want, I’m definitely down for some whiskey to celebrate that asshole getting kicked out of NYU. And to celebrate  _ you _ , for being the strongest person I’ve ever known.” 

“You give me way too much credit, TT.” 

Toni shook her head, grabbing her bottle of whiskey. “No, the rest of the goddamn world doesn’t give you enough.” She untwisted the cap of the bottle and brought the top of it straight to her lips, enjoying the burn of the alcohol in her throat. She then passed the bottle to Cheryl, who took it gratefully. 

“Thank you, Toni.” 

“You don’t need to thank me for anything, baby, but you’re welcome.” 

They sat out there in the cold for about fifteen minutes, passing the whiskey back and forth, until Cheryl started shivering despite the blanket. Toni sealed the bottle and grabbed her girlfriend’s hand, guiding her back through the window before closing it firmly. As she was setting the whiskey bottle on her dresser, too lazy to bring it to the kitchen, she heard something drop onto the floor, and she turned around to see that Cheryl had stripped out of all of her clothes. 

Toni’s mouth went completely dry. “What happened to being cold, Bombshell?” 

“I’m still cold—why don’t you come warm me up, Cha-Cha?” Toni slowly peeled her jacket off of her, letting it drop to the floor as well, and then sliding out of the rest of her clothes as quickly as she could, until she stood stark naked in front of her girlfriend. 

“Don’t have to ask me twice.” She closed the distance between the two of them, her hands immediately wrapping around the redhead and landing on her firm ass, squeezing appreciatively as she sucked Cheryl’s lower lip into her mouth. Cheryl whimpered as her hands did their best to weave into Toni’s loosely braided hair. 

Toni guided Cheryl backwards until she was pressed up against Toni’s closet door. Toni released Cheryl’s lip and dove her tongue between them instead, Cheryl’s meeting it passionately. She felt Cheryl hum into the kiss, and Toni’s left hand came up to pinch Chery’s nipple as her right stayed where it was at Cheryl’s ass. 

She tore her mouth from Cheryl’s suddenly, bringing her lips instead to her neck, sucking the skin there a bit aggressively, and when she pulled away to press a fluttery kiss on it, she noticed the little hickey that had formed. “Whoops, that one left a mark.” 

“Toni,” Cheryl whined. “Watch, I’ll probably completely forget to cover it up on Monday.” 

“So? Everyone will just be reminded that you belong to me,” Toni husked, squeezing Cheryl’s boob possessively. “Plus, you’ve left me with hickeys plenty of times, baby.” 

“Yeah, but yours were always in easy hiding places,” Cheryl said with a huff. 

“Aww, baby, you’re not really mad, are you?” Toni asked, sliding her leg in between her girlfriend’s and watching Cheryl try not to look turned on as she kept a slight look of frustration on her face. 

“No more hickeys,” Cheryl said, her voice shaking despite how commanding she was clearly trying to sound. 

Toni bit down on her own lower lip. “Deal, no more hickeys. But I  _ know _ you like it when everyone know that I’m yours and you’re mine, Cher.” 

“They can know that without the hickeys, Toni.” 

Toni pressed her upper thigh against Cheryl’s center. “Know what, baby? Say it.” 

Cheryl groaned, biting on her lip for a moment before saying, “That I’m yours, TT.” 

“Good girl,” Toni purred, leaning down to press an apologetic kiss over the little bruise on Cheryl’s neck. “No more hickeys.” 

“Mm,” Cheryl hummed, her hands falling to Toni’s ass and squeezing, “thank you.” 

“No need to thank me.” Toni began kissing along Cheryl’s collarbone, hot wet kisses that would definitely not leave any marks. 

Her hands lowered to Cheryl’s ass again, squeezing once before she dropped down to her knees and slid her palms down to the back of Cheryl’s thighs. She began sucking on the damp skin on the inside of her thighs, and Cheryl whimpered. Toni groaned, and she wasn’t able to resist anymore, going for gold as she pressed her tongue into Cheryl’s folds abruptly. “ _ Fuck _ , Toni,” Cheryl gasped, “the bed is  _ right there _ .” 

Toni licked over Cheryl’s clit teasingly and then pulled her face away to look up at her girlfriend’s face innocently. “Do you want me to stop so we can move to the bed, baby?” 

“ _ No _ , Toni, just fuck me,” Cheryl huffed, reaching down to grasp pink hair in her hands and direct Toni’s face back to her center. Toni laughed a little at her girlfriend, returning to her task between Cheryl’s legs. When she felt Cheryl getting worked up, and her hips kept grinding downward at Toni’s face, she finally slipped two fingers inside, and heard Cheryl release a shaky breath. “ _ Oh my _ —fuck, TT!” 

Toni pulled her lips away from Cheryl’s clit as she kept her fingers working inside of her. She was still on the search for Cheryl’s  _ spot _ , which she surprisingly hadn’t discovered yet. She knew that every woman was different, but usually she’d never had trouble finding it. She curled her fingers inside Cheryl, trying to gauge her girlfriend’s reaction. 

Giving up for now, she slowed her movements and heard Cheryl’s whimper of protest. “TT, please don’t stop.” 

“Who do you belong to, baby girl?” 

“You, Toni,” Cheryl gasped out, “I belong to you, I’m yours. Please, Toni.” 

“Please what?” 

Cheryl groaned. “Make me cum, Toni!” Toni smiled to herself, pressing a hot kiss on Cheryl’s lower abdomen as her fingers curled, twisting in a slightly different direction as she continued her search, but this time, the motion made Cheryl cry out louder than Toni had ever heard her, and it was so hot that Toni felt herself edge toward orgasming just by hearing it. “ _ Oh my god _ , Toni,” Cheryl moaned, and Toni experimentally repeated her same motion, while her thumb came into contact with Cheryl’s clit, and the redhead came undone, pulling Toni’s hair as she cried out Toni’s name and then leaned fully against the door in a shaky, sweaty mess. 

“Finally found it,” Toni murmured proudly, pressing fluttery kisses across Cheryl’s abdomen. “This calls for celebration.” 

“What?” Cheryl asked through her heavy breaths. 

Toni didn’t answer as she continued her slow movements inside Cheryl. Usually she would slow to a stop and slide out of her girlfriend, but her beautiful, brave, strong, sensational girl deserved so much more. She began to pick up her pace again, and Cheryl whimpered. 

“T-Toni, oh god,” she breathed out. 

“You deserve the world, baby girl,” Toni whispered out, and she wasn’t even sure that Cheryl could hear her. She gently curled her fingers against Cheryl’s g-spot again, causing the girl to jerk suddenly, gripping Toni’s hair tighter. “The world and so much more.” And with one more movement, she triggered Cheryl’s second orgasm, watching it shake through the redhead. She watched the little wrinkle in her forehead as her eyes squeezed together, watched the arch of her back, watched her mouth open in silent ecstasy before releasing a mix between an exhale and a whine. Toni felt her own wetness suddenly dripping down her thighs. Her girlfriend was  _ so sexy _ . 

“Toni…” Cheryl gasped out, and Toni finally pulled her fingers out from Cheryl’s opening, standing up and wrapping her hands under Cheryl’s thighs, helping to support her since she knew that her legs must be shaky. “Fuck, I’ve never cum that hard before ever, TT.” 

“I finally found your spot, beautiful,” Toni murmured proudly. 

“You’ve been looking?” 

“Of course I have.” 

“Am I supposed to be looking for yours?” Cheryl asked through her still heavy breathing. 

Toni smiled. “Oh, baby, I could tell you exactly where mine is. You wanna know?” Cheryl nodded. “Okay, well let’s get you on the bed first before you collapse. You sure you’re not too tired?” 

“I’m sure, Toni,” Cheryl stated firmly, rolling her eyes. 

“Right, sorry, the s word,” Toni apologized, pulling Cheryl toward the bed. They laid down across it, Cheryl underneath Toni, relaxing fully against the soft mattress. “Better?” 

“Mmhmm.” Toni grabbed Cheryl’s hand, guiding it toward her center. As soon as Cheryl’s fingers touched her lips, the redhead let out a moan as Toni bit her lower lip. “Shit, Toni, you’re absolutely soaked.” 

“Watching the hottest girl alive come undone thanks to your fingers will do that to you,” Toni said, winking at her girlfriend from above her. Cheryl gently slid two fingers inside the pink haired girl, who moaned and fell against Cheryl a little, keeping herself propped up with only her left arm. “O-okay, so….” She gently grabbed Cheryl’s wrist, rotating it just right. “Now you just curl—” 

Cheryl didn’t wait for Toni to finish, curling her fingers quickly and effectively knocking the words and breath right out of Toni’s throat. “Hmm, I think I like that,” Cheryl murmured with a smirk. 

“Fuck, Cher,” Toni groaned as the redhead began to move her fingers inside her. 

“Ride my fingers, TT,” Cheryl encouraged, and Toni pushed herself up to a more seated like position, grinding herself down on Cheryl’s fingers, which were doing considerably less work than normal. But Toni couldn’t even complain, because intermittently, Cheryl’s fingers would curl just right and Toni would feel pleasure start to rake through her body. And finally, she started to get close, and she felt Cheryl’s thumb press into her clit, copying Toni’s earlier play as her fingers curled abruptly into her spot. Toni came instantly, crying out and practically falling forward onto her girlfriend, who gently eased her through her orgasm before pulling out her fingers. “Yeah, I like that.” 

“Me too, baby girl,” Toni panted out, collapsing her whole weight onto Cheryl. 

Cheryl’s fingers began to dance across Toni’s back calmingly. “You work tomorrow, don’t you?” 

“Yeah,” Toni murmured, too tired out to form full sentences. 

“Maybe I’ll get more celebratory news while you’re out then, and when you get home we can celebrate again.” 

Toni chuckled, her heart swelling when Cheryl said  _ home _ . Sure, this was Toni’s home, but the way her girlfriend said it made it sound like theirs, and even though it technically wasn’t, it basically was. And it made her so happy to hear Cheryl say it. “We don’t need a reason to celebrate, babe, at least not with whiskey and sex.” 

“You make a valid point, TT.” 

Toni pressed a soft kiss to Cheryl’s neck before letting out a breath. “Are you comfy? Because I’m about to pass out.” 

“Very comfy, TT.” 

“Mkay good. Goodnight, Cher.” 

“Goodnight, Cha-Cha.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next update will be next week, and the last chapter will *possibly* be two weeks after that. The week it's currently lined up to end on is going to be my main week of finals (I'll have an exam a day, three days in a row, so I can't promise that I will have the mental capacity to remember to do the sneak peek, early update, and all that jazz on time. But we'll see. It might just come out that weekend instead. Anyway, but next week will be on time :)  
> I hope any Americans had a good food day today! Or at least that you go to spend the day with family! I can't say that Thanksgiving is great historically, but it's always good to be thankful for all of the good things in our lives, and remember how lucky we are to have those things. I am so so grateful for all of you for taking time out of your lives to read this story. <3 If you're not American, well, I still hope that you had an amazing day, and I hope that all of you will have a great weekend! Be sure to follow me on Twitter @BrittzandTana to keep up with me in between updates!! xx


	14. Of Course I...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The semester is wrapping up for Choni and the gang.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello and happy Thursday my lovelies!!! Somehow, despite the fact that I have 3 tests coming up next week, I'm feeling kinda chill? I only have one assignment and a project due before the end of the semester now, and then those 3 tests and 1 more during finals week, and then I'm done for the semester! And speaking of being done with the semester, the end of the semester in the story is sorta lining up with mine haha. Reminder that there may not be an update next week if I don't remember to do the sneak peek and early update in the beginning of the week. I need to go into study mode (which I'm so bad at) this weekend, so we'll see how that all plays out.  
> Anyway! Today's a good day because my least favorite class got canceled because we finished course material! So I'm chilling for the next five hours till my physics class lol. Well, I'll probably be studying and shit, but at my apartment which is always nice.  
> Anyway sorry I'm rambling! Enjoy the chapter lovelies! It's the second to last one!! xxx

****The next week of class was the last week before finals started, and after finals week, their three weeks off between semesters would begin. Veronica would go back home to spend the break with her parents, though she’d already been complaining to Toni a lot about having to leave “you _and_ Betty _and_ Cheryl _and…_ _everyone_!” Toni’s response would’ve been “just say in New York then,” but she knew enough about Veronica’s shaky family situation to know that the holidays were maybe the only thing holding her and her parents together as a family at all. And just because Toni didn’t need her family, that didn’t meant that Veronica didn’t need hers to be intact. So instead she just promised her best friend that time would fly and she’d be back in no time.

Sweet Pea had made plans to be gone for the middle part of break to visit his dad and his aunt, and he’d actually offered for Toni to come with him, to which she had sheepishly admitted to him that Cheryl would be staying with them for break. No further explanation had been needed.

No matter what everyone’s plans for break were, though, one thing they were all excited for was to be finished with their classes. Toni especially was ready for spring semester because, as she’d told Cheryl at one point when her girlfriend asked why she wasn’t doing any filming as a film major, she’d been taking the last of her less hands on classes. Photography had been her only hands on class of the semester, and even then, she’d gotten a professor who preferred that his students memorize a plethora of terms instead of actually imitating the methods that the terms described. She was more than excited to finally get to use a camera on a regular basis again.

She’d promised Cheryl that she would be the first subject for her film in the new year, and Toni was already getting excited and planning out what she wanted to do. She couldn’t wait to capture her perfect girlfriend in film.

And to prepare, she’d been taking dozens of pictures of her girlfriend, because her photography final actually did include turning in photos. The professor hadn’t given them specific themes, but had instructed that there had to be some sort of theme to them. So Toni had made her theme  _ Cheryl Blossom _ .

Cheryl caught her taking photos all throughout that week before finals. Despite their classes all week, the two of them had made sure to see each other every day for more than a quick meal. This was accomplished mostly by Toni going over to the dorms to do homework with the redhead, during which she would sneak her camera out multiple times to capture her girlfriend with it.

_ “Toni, I’m trying to focus,” Cheryl huffed, turning her head to look directly into Toni’s camera lens, and the pink haired girl simply took another photo. Cheryl rolled her eyes. “You have enough photos of me from this week.” _

_ “Well I need to turn in like twenty, and they can’t all be from the same day or it’ll look like I didn’t try,” Toni insisted. “Plus, you look too good for me to not take photos, babe.” _

_ “You’ve never been obsessed with taking photos of me until now, though,” Cheryl countered. _

_ “I haven’t had my camera out like all semester, because this professor has been infuriatingly against us actually taking photos for a fucking photography class. Plus, I was too focused on making you mine to take pictures.” _

_ Cheryl scoffed. “I’m pretty sure it was the other way around, TT. I spent my time making you mine.” Toni smiled softly, taking a photo of her girlfriend’s face, and Cheryl shook her head, a smile finally appearing at the corner of her lips. “You’re too much, TT.” _

_ “You love it.” _

_ “Mm.” _

Toni was sure that her girlfriend secretly loved being the subject of Toni’s dozens and dozens of photos, because when she’d begun to pick out which ones she would actually turn in, she’d squished up next to her to look at her laptop screen, taking in all of the different photos of herself and pointing out her favorites.

* * *

On Wednesday, a group text had been sent out to the same group from Friendsgiving.

**V-Ronnie – Alright queers and friends! I know we’re all leaving or doing our own thing at different times next week because of finals, so we are hanging out this weekend so we can all see each other before the break!**

**V-Ronnie – And if anyone dare says that they need time to study, I will come find and fight you, because you can sacrifice three hours of studying or sleeping to hang out with friends.**

**Betty Cooper – What Ronnie really means is that we would love it if you all would come over to my place on Saturday during lunch time so we can all hang out one last time together before break, since everyone has differing plans for the break. We really, really want everyone to come, which is why we put it at lunch time—you all have to eat!—but of course we understand if there is any reason anyone can’t come.**

**V-Ronnie – Everything my bae just said is true except for the last part—like I said before, I will fight anyone who says they can’t come.**

**Kevin – Fangs and I will be there, V and B! Should we bring something?**

**V-Ronnie – Just your cute, gay selves, bb!**

**Sweets – I’ll be there, I don’t work till four so if it’s at like noon, I’m good.**

**Betty Cooper – Yes, it’ll be roughly noon to three. I have a project to work on this weekend too.**

**Juggle-Head – Should be able to make it.**

**V-Ronnie – Great, 4/6 confirmed. TINY TONI! CHERYL! WHERE ARE YALL**

**Betty Cooper – Ronnie, babe, calm down.**

**V-Ronnie – Uh, my two besties are ignoring my invite to hang out before break, I can’t calm down :(**

**Cher <3 – Sorry , V! We’ll be there! Toni doesn’t work till six on Saturday so our day’s wide open :)**

**V-Ronnie – And my other bestie couldn’t reply to say so herself?**

**Toni – I’m right here bitch, excuse me for thinking that it was satisfactory to have my gf who’s sitting right next to me answer for the both of us *eyeroll***

**Betty Cooper – Great! So everyone’s in! 12pm Saturday at my place! We’ll provide food!**

**V-Ronnie – We won’t have any alcohol though, so if any of you bitches wanna get wasted in the middle of the day, it’s BYOB! Except you’re also required to share with me.**

**Betty Cooper – Ronnie, you have so much studying to do on Saturday after this lunch.**

**V-Ronnie – Ugh, I know, fine. Don’t share alcohol with me or my gf will fight you.**

**Betty Cooper – For the record, I will not fight anyone**

**Toni – God you guys are insufferable**

**Sweets – You and Cheryl are worse tbh**

**Cher <3 – Um, no! Incorrect!**

**Toni – The only reason you think we’re worse is bc you spend time around us all the time and not around B and V.**

**Sweets – Keep telling yourself that, Tiny, you’ve become a sap and we all know it.**

**V-Ronnie – He’s right! But it’s cute!**

**Cher <3 – Don’t tease my girlfriend, only I’m allowed to do that! :(**

**Toni – She’s right, she’s the only one who’s allowed to call me a sap or any other dumb word like that, okay the rest of you can fight me!**

**Juggle-Head – *cough cough* whipped *cough***

**Toni – COME OVER HERE AND SAY THAT TO MY FACE JUG**

**Betty Cooper – Whoa there**

**Fangs – Jug I would suggest you don’t further prod the beast, she can pack a punch.**

**Toni – You bet I can !!**

**Cher <3 – As if you would.**

**Toni – CHERYL! Be on my side!! :(**

**Kevin – You two are still sitting next to each other but texting??**

**Toni – No, I’m omw to work now ugh**

**Juggle-Head – Is it safe for me to message again?**

**Toni – NO !!!!**

**Cher <3 – Sorry, TT, I’ll make it up to you later ;)**

**Sweets – Oh shit, @ Veronica !!!**

**V-Ronnie – CHERYL TOPS CONFIRMED?!?!!?!?!?!?!?!**

**Toni – OH MY GOD VERONICA NO STOP**

**Cher <3 – Wait what is happening**

**Toni – She’s been trying to figure out which one of us tops omfg I’m going to actually fight someone rn there better not be any asshole customers tonight**

**Betty Cooper – What even happened to this group chat oh my god**

**Sweets – So, @ Cheryl, who tops then huh? You or Tiny?**

**Cher <3 – um this doesn’t feel like an appropriate forum for that question**

**Toni – just so EVERYONE here knows, JUST BECAUSE SOMEONE IS ON THE BOTTOM SOMETIMES DOESN’T MAKE THEM A BOTTOM! I’m disappointed that even the other queer women in this group don’t know that !!!!!**

**Betty Cooper – Hey, don’t drag me into this, I didn’t say anything**

**Toni – You’re right, Betty, my bad. Do me a favor and withhold sex from V until she recognizes that I am not a bottom**

**V-Ronnie – TONI stop trying to make my girlfriend withhold sex wtf no!!**

**Toni – Also! It is creepy that any of you care about this shit! What happens between me and my girlfriend in the bedroom or anywhere else for that matter is none of your business :(**

**Cher <3 – What she said!**

**V-Ronnie – Ugh ok, ok, I’m sorry! I’ll stop being nosy :(**

**Toni – Thank you, V. @ Sweets you better apologize too or Ronnie passes you in the best friend ranking**

**Sweets – Sorry, Tiny, you know I’m just messing with you**

**Cher <3 – She knows, she just wants to make sure everyone knows she’s a badass.**

**Toni – Cher! Babe! Don’t expose me like this!**

**Toni – You’re all forgiven. Gotta go to work. See you all Saturday, and see you Cher tomorrow! <3**

**Kevin – Aw, so soft.**

**Toni – Shush.**

* * *

The day after the plans had been made for Saturday, Cheryl had two classes less than normal thanks to the semester drawing to a close, so she went over to Toni’s as soon as the pink haired girl was out of class as well. They were working on homework, Toni occasionally stealing pictures of her girlfriend, when Cheryl suddenly set down her pen and sat up straighter in Toni’s desk chair, rotating to look at Toni where she sat on the bed.

“I want to tell everyone.”

Toni furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. “Tell everyone what, Cher?”

“About JJ.”

Toni’s mouth opened into an O shape, and she closed her history of film textbook, scooching it over. Cheryl took the cue and moved from the desk over to the bed, folding her legs under her as she sat next to the pink haired girl. “You’ve been thinking about this a lot?”

“Not really, actually,” Cheryl admitted. “I just thought about it during the whole group chat stuff yesterday. Everyone in there bickers and teases each other, but really, everyone cares so much about everyone else in that group. And… I’m not used to having a support system of more than one person, but I think I’m realizing that they’re all my friends. It’s not just you and Ronnie anymore.”

“They’ve always been your friends, babe.”

Cheryl shook her head. “I don’t know. I’ve been friendly with all of them, yes, but it feels different now. I feel different. I feel… more like  _ me _ , and I’m ready to be accepted in a group of people for this version of me. But… to do that, I need everyone to know about Jason and what happened to him.”

“Well, you know I’m here for you no matter what, Cheryl, so if you want to tell them, I’ve got your back,” Toni promised, grabbing Cheryl’s hands and squeezing them supportively. “Always.”

Cheryl smiled softly. “Thanks, TT. I guess… I’ll tell them at the lunch on Saturday? Or does that make me a shitty person, for drawing all the attention to me while we’re all trying to hang out a last time before the break?”

“It’s important, Cheryl, it’s not going to make you a shitty person. And it’s not like it’s going to take you three hours to tell everyone. And I already know that everyone in that group cares about you, and they’re all going to throw nothing but love and support at you when you tell them about Jason.”

“You’re right,” Cheryl whispered. “God… what would I do without you, Toni?”

“Have a lot less orgasms?”

“ _ Fewer _ , but yes, I guess you’re right,” Cheryl corrected with a small smile. “Should we take a study break?”

“Isn’t that what we’re doing right now?”

“Yeah but… a  _ longer _ study break…”

“Hmm, I don’t know, Bombshell, I have a lot of work to do. You’re going to have to offer something big in return for me abandoning this  _ riveting _ textbook,” Toni said in mock seriousness as she glanced from her girlfriend to the fat textbook next to her.

“I’ll let you fuck me in any position you want.”

Toni felt her mouth go completely dry, and she tried her best to swallow as she just about shoved her textbook off of the bed. “Any position?”

“I mean, pretty much yes. I’ll tell you if it’s not okay.”

Toni bit down on her lower lip, considering her options, and then she smirked. “Well then, baby girl, I’m gonna have to ask you to strip and get on all fours for me. And make it quick, we can’t take  _ too long _ of a study break.”

* * *

Cheryl and Toni were late to the Saturday lunch, and it was entirely Cheryl’s fault, as Toni kept reminding her girlfriend as they hurried through the cold, windy air on their way from the subway station to Betty’s apartment. “It’s not  _ my _ fault that I was so tired this morning!”

“You’re supposed to be the early riser, but you weren’t awake until ten-thirty,” Toni whined.

“You weren’t either! And again I will remind you that it is  _ your _ fault we were up so late, and for the record, I am still sore from everything we  _ did _ before we slept.”

Toni smirked, squeezing her girlfriend’s cold, stiff hand. “Good, that means I did my job right.”

“Toni, this is not the time to pat yourself on the back for your sexual prowess,” Cheryl huffed, pulling herself closer to the pink haired girl.

“ _ Anyway _ , Bombshell, we totally could’ve still made it on time, but  _ someone _ takes forever getting ready.”

“Toni! We had to shower and you  _ also _ did your makeup! This is just as much your fault as it is mine!”

It was about twelve-fifteen, and it wasn’t like it really mattered that they were late. But Toni kind of liked bickering with her girlfriend, because she knew it was harmless, and Cheryl was absolutely adorable when she tried to be mad at her.

They finally reached Betty’s apartment building, Toni smacking her hand over the button by her apartment number. They were buzzed in without having to wait for more than a second, and Cheryl released a relieved breath as they pushed into the warm building. “God, finally. Why does it have to be  _ so _ cold?”

Toni wrapped her arm tightly around her girlfriend, pulling her into a quick, warm hug. “I’ll be sure and warm you up properly when we get back later.”

“Uh, no you won’t,” Cheryl argued. “I’m still sore, I’m not letting you near my vagina for at least twenty four hours.”

Toni’s jaw dropped. “But babe!”

“Come on, TT, we’re already late as it is.”

When they got to Betty’s door, knocking lightly, the door opened to reveal Veronica glaring at them. “Look who decided to show up!”

“We’re not that late,” Toni huffed out.

“You got here later than  _ Jughead _ ,” Veronica said accusingly, though she stepped back to let them into the apartment.

“Hey,” Jughead piped up, “just because I’m usually the last one to show up doesn’t mean I’m always  _ late _ . Lots of you weirdos show up places  _ early _ .”

“Admit it, Jug,” Sweet Pea said, “you’re usually late on purpose.”

“Yeah, he definitely is,” Betty agreed with a laugh.

“Anyway,” Toni said with a shake of her head, “it’s Cheryl’s fault we’re late.”

Cheryl’s nostrils flared as she glared at her girlfriend. “ _ No _ , it’s not!”

Toni turned to look at Cheryl with a pointed look and a smirk. “Well then, Cher, would you like to explain to our dear friends why it’s  _ my _ fault?”

Cheryl’s cheeks flushed suddenly, because her reasoning obviously involved how many times Toni had made her orgasm the night before. “Ugh. Can we just drop it?”

“Gladly, I don’t think I like where this was going anyway,” Veronica said with a curious eyebrow raised. “We waited for you two losers before eating, so sit your asses down so we can finally get some food in our bellies.”

“No complaints here,” Toni said, and she dragged Cheryl over to the table where most of their friends were already seated.

Betty and Veronica brought out the food they’d prepared—salad, mixed fruit, grilled chicken breast, and bread rolls—and then everyone started digging in. They all chatted about their plans for the break. They coordinated when some of them would be completely free around the same time, making loose plans to hang out again before the next semester would start.

The conversation transitioned into one about finals, complaining about the tests and projects that were due, and then Fangs finally groaned and said, “Can we not talk about school right now?”

By that point, they were all mostly finished with their food, and Toni notice as Cheryl pointedly set down her fork and straightened out her posture. “Um, actually, I have something I wanted to talk to you guys about.” Toni instantly set down her fork as well, reaching under the table to place a supportive hand on her girlfriend’s knee.

“Alright, Cher,” Veronica said, looking at her friend curiously.

“So… there’s something that none of you, save Toni of course, know about me, but it’s something that’s been a big part of my life, and I want to share it with you all. Some of you I’ve known longer than others, and some better than others, but I consider all of you as good friends by now, and think it’s time that I tell people about… my twin brother.”

“Shit, you have a twin?” Sweet Pea asked all of the sudden.

“Shut it, Sweets,” Toni snapped, and he looked at her with confusion until Cheryl continued.

“Yes, I…  _ did _ . He was my best—and only, really—friend throughout my whole life. We did everything together, as one would assume, and he was the only person through most of my life that cared about me. And the summer before our first year of college—before I knew any of you—he passed away in a boating accident.”

“Oh my god, Cheryl,” Veronica breathed out. “I can’t believe you never mentioned anything last year, and it had  _ just _ happened.”

“It was a decision I made before moving to the city, and when I make a decision, I stick to it. And I spoke to a therapist about it, but I didn’t want to make friends out of pity. I wanted  _ real _ friends for once, I wanted people to care about me the way Jason did, because I didn’t have that from anyone else at the time. But now I do, and I want to thank you all for being here for me. I don’t say this kind of thing often, but I do appreciate you all.”

“Cher,” Kevin said, “we all love you, and we’re so honored that you trusted us enough to tell us about your brother.”

“Yeah, Cheryl,” Veronica agreed with a firm nod. “No one should have to deal with that kind of thing alone, and I’m glad you had  _ someone _ to talk to, but I’m also glad that you feel comfortable enough to talk about it now.”

Cheryl smiled, and Toni stared into those warm eyes, so full of happiness, and she wasn’t sure she’d ever seen that kind of happiness in her girlfriend’s eyes before. Cheryl had always seemed happy on the outside, although of course since getting to know her on such a deeper level, she’d discovered all of the things that her girlfriend was unhappy about. But right now, it didn’t seem like any of those things really mattered, because the happiness shining in her eyes right now was all there was.

And all Toni wanted to do was to keep seeing that happiness for as long as Cheryl would let her, to be one of the people who could draw it out of her.

Kevin was right, all of their friends loved Cheryl of course, but as Toni was realizing in this moment, no one there could possibly love her as much as  _ she _ did. Because she did, she was  _ so  _ in love with her girlfriend. Cheryl turned her face to look at Toni, and the pink haired girl smiled brightly at her girlfriend, bumping her shoe into Cheryl’s.

The rest of the lunch was more light hearted, and everyone was grateful for the break from studying, but at the end of the three hours, they all had places to be and things to do. As Toni tugged Cheryl toward through the cold back toward the subway, the redhead said, “No funny business when we get back to your place, TT, I have a project to finish and you have studying to do.”

“Fine,” Toni agreed, “but after I get back from work tonight, can we do some funny business?”

“ _ Maybe _ , depending on how sore I still am.”

“Maybe is good enough for me, babe.”

* * *

No funny business was had on Saturday night, because Toni had been a bit more tired out from work than normal anyway, so she’d taken a quick shower, tied her hair into braids, and practically passed out curled up next to Cheryl, who had been laying in Toni’s bed reading when she’d gotten home.

They spent Sunday doing more homework, but taking many study breaks to cuddle and eat some of the random foodstuffs that Sweet Pea and Toni had their freezer. The freezer was a bit of a wild, untouched place, as Cheryl had learned, because every now and then, one of the roommates would buy some sort of frozen food to eat at some point, and then forget it ever existed. Toni couldn’t remember the last time she’d cooked something that was frozen. So Cheryl was taking it upon herself to get some of the food out of the freezer and actually prepared so that it wouldn’t be wasted.

So Sunday was a pretty lowkey day, and Cheryl stayed over again that night, because since the next week was finals, there were no actual classes. Neither Cheryl nor Toni had a final on Monday, so they slept in—as much as they could before Cheryl just  _ had _ to get out of bed—and made eggs, toast and bacon, which they shared of course with Sweet Pea before he left for his final.

After their breakfast, they went back to bed, because they’d already decided that after studying like crazy all weekend, they would be taking a well-deserved break on Monday—especially since Toni had work that night. So Cheryl cuddled into Toni, the pink haired girl trailing her fingers up and down Cheryl’s back and letting herself become absorbed in her girlfriend.

Since her realization on Saturday, she’d been trying to figure out the best time to tell Cheryl how she felt. She knew it was soon—they hadn’t even officially been together for a full month. Yes, they’d been dating for about a month now, and they’d been getting closer and closer for longer than that. And of course, they had been friends for much longer than that. So it didn’t feel too weird to Toni, but she didn’t want to scare her girlfriend.

That said, she  _ had _ to tell Cheryl intentionally, because or else it was going to slip out too casually, or during sex, because now that her brain had thought it at all, she couldn’t get the words out of her head.

“Hey baby,” Toni murmured, her hand moving from Cheryl’s back up to her hair, running her fingers through the beautiful locks appreciatively. Cheryl pulled away a little so she could look at Toni’s face.

“Yes,  _ ma chérie _ ?”

Toni felt herself melting as she looked into those beautiful browns that were staring at her with such care. “Look, I… I know we haven’t officially been together all that long, and I’m still a little scared of scaring you away—which I know is stupid, but I can’t help it. Anyway, I don’t want to freak you out, but I can’t not tell you that I’m in love with you, Cheryl. You’re very easily the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I love waking up next to you—or waking up to your all too cheery good morning texts when we aren’t in bed together. And I love how comfortable I feel around you, and I love that you feel so comfortable around me. I love you, Cher.”

“Oh, TT,” Cheryl murmured, her eyes filling with tears as she smiled.

“And Cheryl, I don’t want you to feel like you have to say it back already. I know it’s soon, but I’ve liked you for so long, and it was so easy for those feelings to grow into so much more. And the more I’ve gotten to know you on a deeper level than I’ve ever known you, the more stronger they grow, and I couldn’t not tell you.”

Cheryl lifted a pale hand to Toni’s cheek, caressing it softly. “You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me too, TT.” She brought their faces together for a soft kiss, and Toni could feel her girlfriend’s pounding heart.

In all honesty, though Toni would never admit this, she was a little sad that Cheryl didn’t say she loved her back. That said, Toni had gone into the moment knowing that was the more likely possibility, because Cheryl’s feelings were so much newer than Toni’s. So she tried not to let it bother her.

* * *

**Tiny Toni – I told her I love her.**

**V-Ronnie – OH MY GOD TINY!! That is such a huge deal dude!! I’m so happy for you! Did she say it back?**

**Tiny Toni – No, but it was well received. And I kind of expected her to not say it back. We haven’t even been officially girlfriends for a month yet. I’m just glad she didn’t like, run the fuck out of the room.**

**V-Ronnie – When did you tell her?**

**Tiny Toni – Yesterday while we were taking the day off from studying. She’s at a final right now.**

**Tiny Toni – Ugh, V, I know I wasn’t expecting her to say it back, but is it bad that I really wish she did anyway? I feel like I can’t say it to her anymore, because it’ll be like, pressuring her.**

**V-Ronnie – Did she say she felt pressured?**

**Tiny Toni – No**

**V-Ronnie – Tiny, you should know by this point that my advice is going to be to talk to her about it.**

**Tiny Toni – Noooo, I don’t want her to know that I’m worried about it. I told her she didn’t have to say it back to me until she fully feels it—and I don’t want her to say it if she doesn’t mean it.**

**V-Ronnie – I get it man. I guess I don’t really have any advice then. The last time I said I love you to anyone was to Brett in HS. And obviously Betty and I haven’t said it yet, I would’ve told you. But I’m starting to feel what you were feeling a few weeks ago—like I might be getting close to wanting say it.**

**Tiny Toni – Ahh that’s so good, V. I’m glad. You two are so, so cute together, and if I’m honest, the way Betty looks at you is like, the cutest thing.**

**V-Ronnie – Lol @ you about Cheryl..**

**Tiny Toni – Well if that’s true, then Betty must love you, Ronnie, because I sure as fuck love Cheryl.**

**Tiny Toni – I just wish I could tell it to her as often as I want. I just, ugh, you know.**

**V-Ronnie – Talk to your girl, Toni. Is she coming over after her final?**

**Tiny Toni – Probably not, I work late tonight and I think she and Fangs are grabbing dinner together to go over some stuff for the class they have together. We’ve spent the last four nights together though, so I don’t expect to sleep very well tonight.**

**V-Ronnie – Aw, Tiny. Well, I think you should talk to her as soon as you get the chance to. It can’t help to have gotten those feelings off of your chest just to have to bottle more up.**

**Tiny Toni – I know you’re right, V. You’re always right lol.**

**Tiny Toni – Tell Betty I say hi :) And let me know when you know what time you’re leaving on Friday so I can pop by and say goodbye!!**

**V-Ronnie – Will do, T!**

* * *

Finals week went by without Toni saying anything to Cheryl about her predicament. She hadn’t said the L word at all since Monday, but things felt kind of weird between her and her girlfriend. They spent Wednesday night together again, after she and Cheryl had each had two finals earlier in the day, and spent Thursday morning making breakfast together and talking like normal. But there was something in the air—a level of awkwardness that hung there, while Toni played the waiting game. Maybe Cheryl didn’t feel it, but Toni couldn’t ignore it.

It was Friday night, when Toni was officially done with her finals, and they were lying in bed naked, after their end of semester celebration, that Toni finally felt like she should just talk about it.

“Oh by the way,” Cheryl was saying, “I booked us a pedicure tomorrow at noon.”

Toni smiled, though her eyebrows knit together slightly. “You didn’t have to do that, Cher.”

“I  _ told _ you we would get one, and I keep my promises, TT,” Cheryl insisted. “Plus, you and I both deserve it after all these stupid finals. I’m so glad to be done with this semester.”

“That makes two of us,” Toni agreed. Her hand was resting on Cheryl’s bare waist, her fingers tapping rhythmically against the soft skin there. She felt the awkwardness hanging there, and she let out a puff of air all of the sudden. “Cher, we need to talk.”

Cheryl looked incredibly concerned all of the sudden. “Uh, what about?”

“Shit, sorry, I didn’t mean to say it like that,” Toni breathed out, moving her hand to the small of Cheryl’s back and scooting a little closer to the redhead. “I want to talk about what I told you on Monday.”

“TT…”

“No wait, hold on,” Toni interrupted. “I feel like there’s been this odd feeling lingering around us ever since I said it, and I hate it. Obviously, I would never take back what I said, but I don’t want it to create tension between us, Cheryl. And… I don’t know what exactly I’m trying to accomplish by telling you this, I just need us to talk about it, because I can’t stop thinking about it and it’s driving me crazy.” Cheryl searched Toni’s gaze carefully, and then she suddenly pulled away, climbing out of bed. Toni felt her heart rate pick up out of anxiety. “Where are you going?”

“Calm down, TT, I’m not going anywhere,” Cheryl promised her. She was moving over to her suitcase—which they’d brought over from the dorms earlier along with a couple other bags of things that Cheryl insisted she needed for the three weeks she would be staying here. She unzipped one of the smaller pockets, reaching into it and producing a long, white box, one that pretty much definitely held some sort of necklace inside it.

Toni sat up on the bed, the sheets falling around her waist and exposing her bare torso. Cheryl turned back and came over to sit across from Toni, who couldn’t help it as her gaze raked over her girlfriend’s beautiful boobs.

“TT,” Cheryl said with amusement, “eyes up, I have something to say.” Toni obeyed, looking into Cheryl’s dark eyes. “I’m so sorry that there’s been any tension, Toni, that’s not what I wanted. I was waiting until next Tuesday to give this to you, because as I’m sure you know, that is our month anniversary, and I know how much of a sap you are. But… here.” She handed the box over to Toni, who took it gingerly.

She opened it quickly, though, and immediately she melted. Inside was a silver twisted chain necklace with a little black heart pendant hanging on it. “It’s so pretty,” she said softly. “You didn’t have to get me anything, though, Cher.”

“I know, and I knew you would say that, which is why I went with something simple,” Cheryl said. “I was still working out all the details of the speech I was going to deliver with it, but I guess I’ll just have to improvise a little. Basically, TT… the past month has been pretty much the best of my whole life, and I would even say that the two months before were far better than most as well. Every moment I spend with you makes me more and more sure of that. I’ve been through so much shit, Toni, and so have you, and I’m still kind of surprised that somehow this happened. All things considered, I mean, with you having liked me for so long, and me being stupidly oblivious and still trying to date people to make my hideous mother proud of me… and then me starting to realize how exceptional you are. And you and I both daring to take the risk of trying for something more than friendship. Toni… I  _ know _ it took me a while to get to everything—to realize there was potential for something between us—but I know that you know that since we’ve gotten together, I’ve been right there with you. And I’ve been playing around with those words in my head too, TT.”

Toni felt her heart pounding as she got lost in her girlfriend’s gaze, glancing away only to look for half a second at Cheryl’s lips as she bit down on her lower one.

“Of  _ course _ I love you, TT, and I know that you and I have, in a way, loved each other for a while now. But this is so much more, and I know you know that, and I am in love with you too, Toni,” Cheryl breathed out. “I’ve never been able to say those words to anyone, TT, but they’re so easy to say to you.”

“ _ Fuck _ Cher, me too. I’ve  _ never _ had this with anyone else, Cheryl. I love you  _ so _ much.”

“Me too, TT.”

Toni closed the necklace box, setting it aside and getting up on her knees to lean forward and press her lips to Cheryl’s. The kiss heated as Cheryl grasped for Toni’s lower back, pulling down into her lap, their naked bodies coming flush with each other.

When their lips parted for air, Cheryl murmured, “I’m so glad you didn’t ask me if I was sure.”

“Yeah, yeah, I was an insecure, pining, tiny little Toni Topaz who was terrified that this wasn’t real,” Toni muttered, “but this feels like the most real thing I’ve ever been a part of, Cheryl, and I’m not insecure about it anymore. That’s why I was even able to tell you that I loved you without expecting a reply.”

“Good. But you’re still my tiny, adorable little Toni Topaz,” Cheryl teased, bringing their lips together again before Toni could protest.

And Toni didn’t even try to, because Cheryl was right. Toni was a pile of mush for her girlfriend, who she loved, and she couldn’t even try to deny it anymore. And for once, she didn’t want to either. She was just so happy, and all she wanted was to hold onto this moment forever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eeeeeeee the "I love you"s happened!!! I hope you guys liked how it played out :)  
> The final chapter of this story is a little shorter than this one, and it's gonna jump around their winter break if I remember correctly, and we'll wrap up this story with the end of that one :) I won't get all end-of-story sappy on you guys until that chapter actually goes up haha! But anyway, I hope you're excited!  
> I hope you all are doing well - if you're in school and your semester is wrapping up, good luck on your finals and projects and all that jazz! If you're not in school, then I hope everything else is going well in your life! I hope you all have a great weekend!! Remember you can follow me on Twitter @BrittzandTana , and I'll know by the middle of next week if the chapter will be up next Thursday or the week after, and I'll post it there!!  
> Have a lovely weekend everyone!! xx


	15. She Didn't Know It Then

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Choni spends the winter break together, and we wrap up this story.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello lovelies! It's that time again-and for the last time with this story. Yes, this is the final chapter! Joining this fandom on Ao3 has been a lot of fun, and I really am looking forward to continuing to write Choni for you all! I have another AU in mind that I'm starting, but I wouldn't expect anything from me until beginning of January at the earliest. I'm hoping that when I'm back at my parents' for the break, and I can't spend as much time with friends and my girlfriend, I'll be hit with all the feels and just pop out a whole new story. We'll see haha.  
> But for now, here is the final chapter of She Didn't Know It Then. Enjoy <3 x

**** Toni quietly slipped into the apartment just past two in the morning, closing the door as silently as she could. She wasn’t used to getting home this late, but Hanna had had a whole issue with flights and not being able to get to her closing shift, so Toni had taken the second half of it, since she was supposed to get off at eleven. 

It was kind of the worst day for it to happen, since it was Christmas Eve—or well, it was Christmas now. Toni had been excited to be home for the actual start of Christmas at midnight, because she’d promised Cheryl a proper celebration—one that included a lot of sex—for their first Christmas together, but now she was sure that her girlfriend would be asleep. 

Toni set her bag down on the kitchen counter, turning on just a single light since the room wasn’t pitch black to start. A few days before, Cheryl had turned up with a small, red, plastic Christmas tree and a bunch of decorations, and she and Toni had set it all up and hung the ornaments and lights on it. Toni hadn’t had a Christmas tree the year before, and the year before that, Sweet Pea’s dad’s lame excuse for a tree was the closest thing to a real tree she’d ever had. So this was a big change for her, and she was honestly welcoming it with open arms. 

Cheryl, on the other hand, had said that she’d had Christmas trees every year—real ones too. But Christmas had never really been a pleasant holiday for her. She’d gotten presents, of course, but being forced to spend time with her parents and oftentimes some of her extended family was never a fun experience. And her last Christmas—the one without Jason—had been really hard for her. So both of them were ready to have a nice Christmas between the two of them. 

So she felt bad about getting back late, but there wasn’t anything she could do about it at this point. She’d told Cheryl that she was taking the end of Hanna’s shift as soon as she’d known earlier that morning, and Cheryl hadn’t been mad per se, but she knew she’d been a little disappointed. 

Sighing, Toni grabbed a little yogurt cup from the fridge and ate it quickly. Then she slipped into the bathroom to get ready for bed before slipping into her bedroom, afraid of waking her girlfriend up. 

When she finally did enter her bedroom, she was surprised by the fact that the light was still on. Her gaze shifted to the bed, and she was met with the most adorable sight—her girlfriend wearing adorable Christmas pajamas, passed out on top of the comforter with her phone resting on her stomach. It was obvious that Cheryl had tried to stay up, and failed miserably. 

Toni went over to her nightstand, plugging her phone in, and then shed her clothes, grabbing the Christmas pajamas that were sitting on top of her dresser. Cheryl had brought them back the same day she’d gotten the Christmas tree. That had been the day that Toni had remembered to give Cheryl the spare key and the code to the door downstairs so that she could get into the apartment without Toni, and of course Christmas shopping had been her first priority. 

Toni knew that Cheryl had also bought her a Christmas present during that same shopping trip, because amongst the decorations and the pajamas had been a neatly wrapped gift. Toni, on the other hand, had ordered Cheryl’s present online so that she didn’t have to figure out when to go out and shop without her girlfriend. It was easy for the redhead, of course, since Toni had to leave to work every day, but it made more sense for Toni to just order online. 

She tugged the pajamas on before going over to Cheryl and carefully removing her phone from her stomach, plugging it in and setting it on the other nightstand. She then flipped off the light and climbed into bed, gently pulling the covers out from underneath Cheryl and draping them over both her and her sleeping girlfriend. 

Cheryl stirred, despite Toni’s efforts to make the transition as seamless as possible, and her eyes fluttered open in the dark. “Toni?” 

“Hey, babe,” Toni murmured, pulling her girlfriend into her arms. “Sorry to wake you. Just got home.” 

“I missed you,” Cheryl mumbled, burying her face into Toni’s neck, “and I was trying to wait up for you.” 

“I noticed,” Toni teased, “but it’s okay, I didn’t expect you to. It’s late.” 

“How was work?” 

“Really busy. The bar gets a decent mix of college kids who didn’t go home who show up to party on Christmas Eve and the people are genuinely sad and alone. Heard lots of sob stories, poured lots of shots, all that jazz. I guess the extra money from covering part of Hanna’s shift is nice, but I definitely would’ve rather been here with you.” 

Cheryl hummed, pulling her face away from Toni’s neck in order to press her lips into the pink haired girl’s. Toni kissed her back firmly, and Cheryl’s hand came up to her hair, tangling into it tightly. When she disconnected their lips, the redhead whispered, “I’m just happy that I get to spend all day tomorrow with you, TT.” 

“Me too, baby. I’m sorry we didn’t get to have the celebration we wanted tonight.” 

Cheryl nails scraped across Toni’s scalp gently as she pressed another kiss to Toni’s lips. She then hovered right in front of Toni’s face and murmured, “Who says we can’t still have it?” 

“You’re not too tired?” 

Cheryl hummed. “I’m pretty sure you’re gonna be doing most of the work anyway, TT.” Toni gently pushed Cheryl so that she was on her back and crawled on top of her. 

“And you say you’re not a pillow princess.” 

“TT, I’m  _ not _ a—” 

“I know, I’m messing with you, beautiful,” Toni promised, connecting their lips passionately, biting down on Cheryl’s lower one as she felt Cheryl fighting her for control—revenge for calling her a pillow princess no doubt. But as Toni snuck her hand underneath Cheryl’s pajama top, bringing it up to cup her right boob, Cheryl gave in and let Toni have control, her back arching as Toni began massaging it slowly, occasionally brushing her thumb over the nipple, causing Cheryl to shiver. 

Slowly, Toni dragged the pads of her fingers down Cheryl’s abdomen and finally slipping underneath her pants and panties, her lips traveling to Cheryl’s neck. She didn’t feel like teasing her girlfriend too much—it was Christmas, after all, the holiday that was all about giving. Plus, she still felt bad about getting back so late. 

So her fingers came to meet her girlfriend’s warm, wet center softly, her thumb massaging her clit as her fingers circled her entrance. “Mm, Toni,” Cheryl murmured, one of her hands gripping Toni’s hair as the other fell to her lower back, scratching her slightly with the nails on her finger that were long. She’d been pretty consistently keeping two short, because although Toni did usually top, the pink haired girl received often enough that Cheryl found it useless to wear fake nails just to take them off again later. 

Toni finally slipped two fingers into her girlfriend, picking up her pace instantly and loving the sound of her girlfriend letting out a little groan as her nails dug into her scalp. Suddenly, though, Cheryl’s right hand was moving from her back to her front, sliding into Toni’s pants and coming to her core. Toni let out a little gasp into her girlfriend’s neck. “What happened to me doing all the work, babe?” 

“It’s Christmas,” Cheryl stated between her heavy breaths, as though that in itself explained her reasoning. 

Toni didn’t question it, though, because Cheryl was pulsing in and out of her, and she picked up her own pace as she felt herself grinding into Cheryl’s fingers. Cheryl gently pressed against her spot, and Toni groaned, tossing her head up and back at the sudden contact. She felt Cheryl lean up, pressing hot, sloppy kisses to her exposed neck, and Toni could barely think. She tried her best to refocus on her main task, picking up the pace of her fingers working inside Cheryl. 

Cheryl fell back against the pillow, her back arching a little as her leg wrapped around Toni’s. Toni could feel her pace slowing as she was distracted by Toni’s motions, but then Cheryl grunted and curled her fingers against Toni’s walls, causing the pink haired girl to gasp. “Fuck, baby, I’m so close,” she groaned out. “Are you close, baby girl?” 

“ _ Yes _ , Toni, I’m close,” Cheryl gasped out. 

“Cum with me, okay?” Toni looked down at her girlfriend, whose eyes were squeezed closed as she nodded. Toni tried to keep her eyes open as she quickened her pace and began to curl her fingers inside Cheryl, as the redhead did similar actions inside her, but she eventually closed them as she came hard and all of the sudden. She heard Cheryl cry out her name in ecstasy, and she was glad that they’d come together, because she was officially out of energy to continue. 

Toni collapsed into the sheets next to Cheryl. “Damn, babe.” 

“Yeah,” Cheryl agreed, turning onto her side as her breathing evened out slowly. Toni turned her head to look at her beautiful girl. 

“God, I love you, Cher,” Toni groaned, hoisting herself up onto her side as well to press a searing kiss to her girlfriend’s lips. The kiss lasted a good few moments, and then they pulled away and cuddled into each other, pulling the comforter fully over them from where it had apparently been shoved away during their celebration. 

“Merry Christmas,  _ mon amour _ ,” Cheryl whispered. 

“Merry Christmas, Cheryl.” 

* * *

The next evening, Toni and Cheryl were cuddled up on the couch in their pajamas, watching A Christmas Story, which Toni had been horrified to find out Cheryl had never seen. As a big fan of movies, Toni loved the classic movie, and so she’d turned it on for her and her girlfriend to watch as they sipped cinnamon hot cocoa and cuddled underneath a fluffy blanket.

Their Christmas had been so nice thus far. They’d slept in after their late night, but as soon as they were up, Cheryl had tugged Toni out to the living room to open their Christmas presents. Toni had opened hers only to have her jaw drop open, rendering her speechless as she’d looked at the camera inside the box. She remembering Cheryl asking her what kind of camera she’d had, and sure, it wasn’t brand new and didn’t include every feature on the face of the planet, but it had been the first camera she’d bought for herself after high school, and it had treated her well. But this one  _ was _ brand new, and it came with a detachable flash, and had so many features. She’d been honestly blown away as she began examining it. Cheryl had smiled proudly the whole time, accepting a thank you kiss and the promise of sex later that night with, the latter with a little laugh. 

Toni had been biting down on her lower lip as Cheryl unboxed her present, hoping that her girlfriend liked it. It definitely wasn’t as stunning as a shiny, brand new camera, but she’d seen it online and immediately thought of her girlfriend. It was a sleek, red, leather jacket, and as far as Toni knew, Cheryl didn’t own a leather jacket of any kind. She knew, though, from Cheryl wearing  _ her _ leather jackets, that it would look hot as hell on her. And when Cheryl had laid her eyes on it, she’d lit up and grinned excitedly, claiming that she already knew exactly how she would first style it. And Toni was just happy to see Cheryl smile—as per usual. 

After presents, they’d had a typical breakfast, though it was lunch time, saving the fancy Christmas meal stuff for dinner. They’d spent most of the middle of the day just lounging around the apartment together, talking on the phone with Veronica and then Sweet Pea for a little while, and then they’d started cooking their Christmas dinner. Well, really Cheryl started cooking, and Toni sat at the bar and kept her company as she did. When the food was ready, they popped a ready-to-bake blueberry pie into the oven and sat at the bar eating their turkey, mashed potatoes, bread and salad. 

When they finished eating and waited for the pie to finish, Toni grabbed her new camera and powered it on, pointing it at her gorgeous girlfriend. “Just as beautiful as always,” Toni had said playfully, snapping the photo as Cheryl had rolled her eyes in response to the comment. “See? You’re a masterpiece.” 

She played around with features on the camera for a little while, using Cheryl as her subject, and the redhead began to give her silly little poses for her shots—after making the pink haired girl promise to not post the pictures anywhere on the internet. 

When the pie was done, Toni put the camera away and they sat on the couch eating the pie. It was after that that they had decided to watch A Christmas Story, and now here they were. 

It was about halfway through the movie when Cheryl got a phone call, and Toni paused it as the redhead began searching the blankets for her phone. When she found it, she groaned. “It’s my mother. When I told her I wasn’t coming home for Christmas, I told her we could talk on the phone on the day, but I was hoping she’d forget. I’ll make it quick.” 

Toni just nodded as Cheryl answered the phone, her voice so much shallower than normal. “Mother. Yes, merry Christmas to you too. How’s Nana Rose? Good. Maybe spring break for a day or two. No, I don’t.” Toni was stroking Cheryl’s free hand under the blanket, knowing that talking to her mom was hard for her. “We can talk about that later, mother. Yes, it’s really nice. I  _ told _ you about her, mother.” Cheryl huffed, turning her head and looking away from Toni as she continued, “Her name is Toni. It doesn’t matter what you think.  _ Don’t _ bring  _ him _ up to me. I am not having this conversation with you, tell Nana I said Merry Christmas, goodbye.” Cheryl hung up the call, tossing her phone down and letting out a slow breath, her eyes falling shut. 

Toni was frowning deeply as she gently edged closer to her girlfriend. “You wanna talk about it?” 

“She’s always going to be the same way,” Cheryl said with a soft sigh. “I shouldn’t  _ care _ . She never loved me, and she never will, and I need to just accept it and move on.” 

“It’s not an easy thing to accept, babe. Trust me, I know. It’s a major process to move on from something like that,” Toni assured her. “But I’m here for you, and you know that it doesn’t matter what she thinks of you.  _ I _ love you, our friends love you. We’re all here for you.” 

“I know, TT.” Toni wrapped her arms around the redhead, who gratefully melted into her embrace. “Thank you. I just wish I could…  _ escape _ her. I just need to finish college and then I can. But until then, I have to keep a connection with her, and I hate it.” 

Toni sighed, unsure of exactly what to say to make her girlfriend better, so she just held her closer. “You wanna finish the movie later and take a nap or something?” 

“No, we should finish the movie,” Cheryl insisted, carefully pulling out of Toni’s embrace to grab her hot cocoa off of the table. “I don’t want to let my mother and her ignorance and idiocy ruin our Christmas together.” 

Toni smiled softly at her girlfriend. “I love you, Cher.” 

“I love you too, Toni.” 

* * *

“Oh my god, it’s been forever,” Veronica exclaimed as she ran into Toni’s apartment, grabbing the smaller girl in an aggressive hug.

“It’s been like two weeks, V,” Toni said with a laugh, hugging her friend back. 

“Hey, time didn’t drag for you because you had your  _ girlfriend _ with you for all that time! I was stuck listening to daddy talk about all of his stupid business endeavors and shit,” Veronica huffed out, pulling out of the hug and turning to Cheryl, who was standing a pace behind Toni. “Cher! Ah! It’s been forever!” 

“You just said that,” Cheryl said with a chuckle, welcoming the hug that Veronica was coming with her at. 

Veronica had originally planned to stay back home for the full three week break, but after the first two, she’d fully given up. She’d wanted to stay with Betty, but the blonde had ended up going home to see her parents after her mother had reached out to her apologetically, wanting to reconnect after practically severing ties over her coming out over a month before. So with Betty not being in the city, Veronica’s options were limited, since the dorms were basically closed. 

So of course, Toni had invited her best friend to stay on their couch. And Sweet Pea was back now, so it would make four of them in the apartment, but she definitely didn’t mind having all of her favorite people—her family—all staying with her. 

Veronica grabbed her suitcase, pulling it into the apartment. “Thank you guys again for letting me stay here. I could not put up with my parents any longer. I told them you had an emergency, Tiny, and that I had to come back.” 

“I bet your dad said something along the lines of ‘this is why you don’t make friends with  _ those _ people,’” Toni said, quirking up an eyebrow as she stood by her girlfriend, slipping her arm around her waist as Veronica closed the apartment door and pulled her suitcase over to the couch. 

“Something like that,” Veronica admitted. She turned to face the two women. “Where’s Sweets?” 

“He works till eight,” Cheryl said before Toni could, and it made the smaller girl smile a little bit. She was getting way too used to Cheryl living with her, and she honestly wasn’t ready for the redhead to go back to the dorms in a week. 

“But he’s going to the New Year’s Eve party, right?” Veronica demanded. 

“Pretty sure,” Toni said with a nod. 

The party Veronica was referring to was one thrown by some Delta Gamma Zeta girls who lived off campus, but the party was pretty much open. Toni knew that the usual party crowd would be there, if they were in town, including people like Reggie Mantle and Archie Andrews. But those of their friends who were in town—like Fangs and Jughead—were going to be there too, so they’d agreed to go. And, as they’d already discussed, they were going to do their best to stay the whole time, since Veronica would be without her girlfriend, and they didn’t want to just abandon her there. 

Plus, it was New Year’s Eve, and they had to get their kiss at midnight. 

“Do you guys have any food here?” 

“Not much,” Toni admitted, “um, I think we have some leftovers from a couple of days ago…” 

Veronica rolled her eyes as she pulled out her phone. “What do you guys even eat here?” 

“Eggs and toast and takeout,” Cheryl offered, snickering as Toni huffed. “And occasionally, something interesting that we find in their mystery freezer.” 

“Well, that sounds great and all, but I’m going to just order something—and it’s not going to be pizza or Chinese food, sorry Tiny.” She was scrolling through her phone. “Ooh, this place has some nice looking salads. What do you guys want?” 

“Uh—” 

“Hurry up, or you get nothing,” Veronica huffed, and Cheryl left Toni’s side to go look at the phone to see her options. Toni just rolled her eyes, leaning against the counter. 

“Pick me something, babe,” Toni requested. 

“I’ll take that, get Toni that,” Cheryl said, pointing to something or another on the screen. 

“Alrighty… and… ordered!” Veronica exclaimed brightly. “I don’t know how you’ve managed to live in this place for two weeks, Cher.” 

Cheryl chuckled. “It hasn’t been that bad.” 

“Um, it hasn’t been  _ bad _ at all,” Toni argued, crossing her arms over her chest as she did her best to glare at her girlfriend. 

“Aw, poor little tiny Toni,” Veronica teased, and Toni rolled her eyes as Cheryl came back over to her. 

“You know I’ve loved staying here with you,” the redhead said with a little laugh, wrapping her arms around her and pressing a kiss to her cheek. It wiped the frown off of Toni’s face immediately. 

“You two are so adorable,” Veronica said with a sigh. “Ugh. I miss my girlfriend.” 

“When does she come back?” Cheryl wondered. 

“In a couple days probably. She didn’t really have a set plan, so she’s playing it by ear.  _ Hopefully _ , since I’m here, she’ll be motivated to come back  _ faster _ .” 

“I’m keeping my fingers crossed for you, Ronnie.” 

“Yeah, so you can get me out of your hair and fuck at full volume.” 

Cheryl’s face turned red, tightening her hold around Toni’s waist as the smaller girl quirked up an eyebrow at her friend. “Oh, you think we’re  _ not _ going to fuck at full volume just because you’re here?” 

“ _ Toni _ ,” Cheryl hissed, but Toni couldn’t help but grin evilly as Veronica’s face twisted into one of offense. 

“Well, I’d  _ hoped _ that you’d have some decency toward guests,” Veronica huffed, crossing her arms now as she turned her nose up a little. 

“We  _ will _ ,” Cheryl told Veronica, rolling her eyes. 

Toni smirked. “Well, we’ll  _ try _ . And by we, I mean Cheryl, and she’ll have a hard time, considering how I can make her—” 

“Toni!” Cheryl exclaimed, cutting the pink haired girl off and causing her to start laughing. “Oh my god!” 

Veronica was laughing now too. “Oh my god, Toni, you’re so savage.” 

“Well now you’ll have no problem with us having sex, at least not tonight, because Toni isn’t getting any,” Cheryl huffed out, crossing her arms. 

Toni’s jaw dropped. “What? Cher! You’re gonna have us miss out on brand new year sex?” 

“You did this to yourself, TT.” 

Toni turned to fully face Cheryl, practically forgetting that Veronica was standing a few feet away from them, and looped her thumbs through Cheryl’s belt loops, tugging her close. “Let me make it up to you tonight instead?” 

Cheryl flushed, and though Toni could tell she was trying to resist giving in, the shorter girl knew she would be winning this one. 

“Earth to besties,” Veronica interrupted, “I’m right here, can you not? Ugh. Never mind. I’m going to use the bathroom. You have two minutes to be insufferable.” Veronica turned, headed for the hallway, and disappeared into the bathroom. 

Toni looked back to Cheryl pointedly, tugging on her belt loops again. “What do you say, baby girl? Let me start your new year off right?” 

Cheryl let out a long breath. “Fine.” 

* * *

The New Year’s Eve party was  _ wild _ .

It was in a bigger place than the Halloween party had been in, but it was just as packed with people, and even more people were getting wasted and high off their asses. Toni, Cheryl, Veronica, Sweet Pea, Fangs, and Jughead mostly stuck together during the first part of the party, but when they all crammed onto the makeshift dance floor, Toni and Cheryl broke off from the group a bit. It was easier to dance  _ intimately _ without worrying about friendly conversation. 

It was nearing midnight when they all met up again by the alcohol, pouring themselves champagne before everyone at the party could get it all. They then found the least populated area of the party place to stand around and catch up. 

Veronica did a lot of complaining about her parents, and Jughead talked about how he went home for a few days to see his parents and his little sister. Sweet Pea mentioned that his dad seemed to be getting his shit together more than normal, and Toni was happy to hear that. Fangs talked about how uneventful his break had been, especially with Kevin gone, and Veronica groaned and agreed that it was the worst to spend the break apart from one’s significant other. 

At that, Cheryl had tugged Toni closer to her, and the smaller girl turned her head to press a sweet kiss to her cheek. 

“God, you guys are adorable,” Fangs said with a shake of his head. 

“Aren’t they?” Veronica agreed, grinning at her best friends. 

Sweet Pea shook his head. “It’s not adorable when you live with it.” 

“Shut it, Sweets, you know you love having Cheryl around,” Toni argued, wrapping her arm tightly around her girlfriend’s waist. 

“I love that she buys good food every now and then.” 

“Wow, low blow, Sweet Pea,” Cheryl said, feigning hurt and shaking her head. 

“In actuality, though,” Sweet Pea continued, “Cheryl is a better housemate than Toni.” 

Toni’s jaw dropped. “Sweets! What the fuck?” 

“She cleaned the apartment while you were at work the other day.” 

“Yeah, and I’ve cleaned the apartment plenty of times. Maybe the problem here, Sweets, is that  _ you _ never clean the apartment.” 

Sweet Pea flushed, rolling his eyes. 

“Yeah, call him out,” Jughead teased with a laugh. 

“You guys are all too much,” Cheryl said with a shake of her head. 

People around them suddenly started counting down, and Toni looked down at her phone. Sure enough, it about fifty seconds to midnight. 

Toni held tightly to Cheryl as they all started counting down with everyone else. 

“Five, four… three, two… one!” 

“Happy New Year!” Everyone shouted, and the knocking together of plastic and glass cups could be heard all throughout the party space. 

Toni immediately pulled her girlfriend in for a kiss, feeling Cheryl kiss her back with so much passion and love. Her felt her heart swell when they pulled apart, and she could see one of the widest smiles across Cheryl’s face. “I fucking love you,” Toni murmured, her hand running through Cheryl’s fiery hair. 

“I love you too, TT.” She held up her plastic cup of champagne. “Here’s to a new year?” 

* * *

“TT,” Cheryl murmured with a little laugh against Toni’s lips, “we have to be quiet. I know Sweets can’t hear anything from his room, but Ronnie is definitely gonna be able to hear if we’re loud.”

Toni just sucked Cheryl’s lower lip into her mouth, biting down on it softly and hearing her girlfriend hum contently. They were laying on their bed, already changed into pajamas and having gotten all ready for bed. Veronica was on the couch in the living room, and Toni knew that Cheryl was probably right. She released Cheryl’s lip with a little pop and kissed her way over to Cheryl’s ear, which she nibbled on the lobe of for a moment, feeling her girlfriend’s body react, before murmuring, “Well then, baby girl, you better be quiet.” 

Toni grabbed both of Cheryl’s clothed breasts in her hands, squeezing appreciatively and causing the redhead to moan. “ _ Toni _ …” 

“I thought you wanted us to be quiet?” Toni teased, grinding her center down against her girlfriend’s. “No sounds.” 

“I didn’t say we had to be completely—” 

“Hey, you made the rules,” Toni interrupted, squeezing Cheryl’s boobs again before rubbing her thumb over where her nipple was under her shirt and bra. “I’m just enforcing them, so shush.” 

Cheryl obeyed now, snapping her mouth shut and biting down on her lip as Toni dragged her hands down to the waistband of Cheryl’s sweatpants. She tugged them off in one quick moment, underwear included, and tossed them away. Pushing Cheryl’s thighs apart, she settled herself in between them happily, and pressed a careful kiss on top of Cheryl’s clit. She felt Cheryl’s thighs tense as she stifled a moan, one of her hands falling into Toni’s hair and the other pressing the back of her wrist against her mouth. 

Toni wasn’t going to make this easy for her, and she began to tease around her clit evilly, scraping her teeth over it and flicking her tongue against it before sliding her tongue through her folds and then flattening it over her clit fully. 

“ _ Oh _ ,” Cheryl gasped. 

Toni pulled her face away from her girlfriend’s center. “What did I say about sounds, baby girl?” 

“No sounds,” Cheryl whimpered out, wrapping her legs around Toni as her right hand grabbed at her own breast. “I’m sorry, TT.” 

“It’s okay, baby. Be a good girl and stay quiet,” Toni reminded her, smirking a little as she brought her lips back to Cheryl’s clit. She teased it a little more, before bringing her fingers to her entrance and abruptly sliding two inside. She looked up to see Cheryl trying so hard to make no noise as Toni began to pump in and out of her quickly. 

She kept her mouth on Cheryl’s clit as she increased her pace even more, and then after a moment of thought, she added one more digit inside her girlfriend, and Cheryl let out a loud gasp as she did. “ _ F-fuck _ , Toni,” Cheryl whimpered, “p-please don’t stop!” 

“What happened to being quiet?” Toni said, pulling her lips away from Cheryl’s clit, but keeping her fingers in motion. She wasn’t going to be  _ cruel _ . 

“I’m s-sorry, I c-can’t,” Cheryl whimpered, her chest heaving up and down, and Toni could tell that she was doing her best to keep her voice down still. “P-please, TT, I want you, I n-need you to make me cum!” 

“What was that? You’re still being pretty quiet there, baby girl, I couldn’t quite hear you…” She began to slow her pace, and Cheryl let out a loud groan. “You’re gonna have to speak up…” 

“ _ Fuck _ me, Toni,  _ please _ ! I’m s-so close, p-please!” Cheryl pleaded, loud enough that Toni wouldn’t be surprised if Veronica had heard, but not so loud that it was a sure thing. 

“Good girl, Cher,” Toni murmured, and she lowered her head to suck on Cheryl’s clit as her fingers curled to hit her spot simultaneously, and Cheryl let out a cry of ecstasy as her orgasm shook through her body, and then she fell limp into the sheets below her. “I knew I could make you scream, baby girl.” She slowly pulled her fingers from her girlfriend, wiping them on the sheet. 

“D-don’t you  _ baby girl _ me,” Cheryl huffed out, still recovering from her climax, “I’m officially mad at you for not letting me be quiet.” 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, babe, I did tell you to be quiet…” 

“Ugh, get over here,” Cheryl demanded in annoyance, and Toni laughed, scooting up next to her girlfriend, who was curling into her immediately. “I can’t believe you, TT.” 

“I know, I’m pretty amazing,” Toni teased, wrapping her arms around her and beginning to pull her fingers through soft, red hair. 

“Not what I meant by that,” Cheryl grumbled. 

“You’re so beautiful, baby,” Toni murmured, pressing a kiss to Cheryl’s forehead. “I’m sorry for making you scream.” 

“Ugh, don’t apologize, TT.” 

“See, I knew you weren’t really mad.” 

“It’s impossible to be mad at you when you make me feel like that, Toni.” 

Toni smiled. “I love you so much, Cheryl Blossom.” Cheryl scooched impossibly closer to the pink haired girl. 

“I love you too.” 

“Happy New Year.” 

* * *

The first Monday of the spring semester was a rough one for Toni Topaz, who was still recovering from spending a night without Cheryl after a solid three weeks of them sharing a bed. She had hardly been able to fall asleep the night before, and she’d woken up to the sound of her phone beeping with the early good morning text from her girlfriend.

**Cher <3 – Good morning, mon amour. I’m headed to my first class, but I miss you a lot :( I hope you have fun in film class today! And I’ll see you tonight for dinner!**

**TT <3 – Morning, babeeee. Thanks, I hope you have a good class too.**

**TT <3 – Did you have just as hard a time sleeping last night as I did?**

**Cher <3 – Yes :(**

**Cher <3 – I hope you’re prepared for me spending every weekend with you, because there’s no way I can go more than five nights in a row sleeping alone.**

**TT <3 – You still have the key, baby, you’re welcome anytime and you know that.**

**Cher <3 – I know.**

**Cher <3 – I’m headed into class. Love you, TT! I’ll text you when I’m out, even though you’ll be in class by then :(**

**TT <3 – Okay! I love you too, babe. <3**

The hardest part of the new semester was definitely going to be  _ this _ , not being able to spend more than maybe a couple of hours with her girlfriend on weekdays. But that was the way it was, and she couldn’t do anything about it. And she was sure they’d fall back into that routine, and that weekends would be their time together, even if Toni had to work most weekend nights. They’d make it work. 

And Toni didn’t know it then, but at the end of that semester, Cheryl would be moving into the apartment permanently, leaving the dorms behind. And Veronica would get fake-mad at the redhead about leaving the Delta Gamma Zeta dorms, until Betty would ask her to move in, and then both of the sorority members would be moving out. 

She didn’t know it then, but she would spend the whole summer with her girlfriend. They would go out on the town with their friends, cuddle in bed late at night after Toni got home from work, make dinners together and saving leftovers for when Sweet Pea would get home. She would hold her girlfriend and let her cry on her shoulder on the second anniversary of her losing her beloved brother. She would support her in applying for an internship in a casting office near Broadway, and send her off to her first day ever of work. She would celebrate her twenty-first birthday a few weeks after celebrating Cheryl’s, and they would legally get drunk out at one of their favorite clubs with their friends. 

She didn’t know it then, but she would be spending a week of summer a few states south, on Virginia Beach sipping margaritas and tanning in the sun and splashing in the waves. She would make love to her girlfriend in a giant, king sized hotel bed over and over, and then in a giant jacuzzi tub. 

She would continue falling so much more deeply in love with Cheryl Blossom, for the rest of her life, and  _ that _ , she was already pretty sure of.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to thank you all so much for joining me on this journey. I loved writing and sharing this story with all of you. Any last feedback is of course appreciated, and I will do my best to respond to all comments on this final chapter. Also, be sure to follow me on Twitter @BrittzandTana to get updates about my writing, see how you can support my writing, and just to say hi and fangirl over Choni with me :)  
> Again, I appreciate you all so much for spending some of your time reading this story <3 I hope you all have a lovely holiday season! xx

**Author's Note:**

> Hello hi! I hope you're enjoying this story! I very much appreciate you being here and taking time to read it! Remember, updates are weekly (or twice weekly), ALWAYS!  
> If you wanna hear more from me, I'm always on Twitter @BrittzandTana and I loooove to talk! So hit me up! Again, thank you for being here!


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